Fire and Iron
by TheIronDragon
Summary: The winds of change are blowing in Westeros and whom the spoke of power will belong to is a question that remains to be answered.
1. Preview

Fire and Iron

Preview

The winds of change are blowing in Westeros- An illegitimate and mad at best Queen sitting on the Iron Throne, a King in the North with a much more important mission than the seat of swords, and a pair of queens with old heritage and a strong claim sailing to Westeros, with three dragons in toe, whom the spoke of power will belong to is a question that remains to be answered.

Last we saw, Yara Greyjoy-Queen of the Iron Islands-and Daenerys Targaryen-Mother of dragons and rightful queen of Westeros-have sailed away from Meereen, and the only home that Daenerys has ever known, to reclaim the throne that was taken from her by the usurper, Robert Baratheon. This mission will prove to be the hardest of their lives, with a small set of powerful allies, and a kingdom to conquer, can their convictions be strong enough to reclaim what is theirs, and fight the traditions of a patriarchal Westeros?

 **Hello guys! I am back! How are you all doing? I hope well, and let me start by apologizing for taking so long; but the new episodes have blown my mind so I got over my writer's block rather quickly. More than anything though, I am coming back because it doesn't look like the show is going to let us get some Dany and Yara loving, not even some light flirting! And my love for these two is too big to let this stand, so, I hope you enjoy this series, and give it as much love as you did Sail Away!**

 **-Really quick Disclaimer: I've taken some liberties with the way things will work, but I am trying to use as many canon characters as is humanly possible. I will also be fixing some minor plot holes that I never addressed in Sail Away (The biggest one was pointed out by a Guest reviewer: There is no gunpowder, so can't have cannons, lets see how creative I can get without them.)**

 **As always, any kind of reaction and suggestions are welcome! The plot for this story is not set in stone, which means if you think you have a good idea to where this should go, send me a message!**

 **Finally, I am planning on this story having anywhere from 10-15 chapters, just like Sail Away, but if I get carried away with the battles or the politics of Westeros, there might be more. There is one more story after this one, so this is officially the second part of the trilogy.**

 **Hope you guys stay tuned, and I will more than likely see you next week with the first chapter of** **Fire and Iron** **.**


	2. A War To Win

**Hey guys! I am so thankful that the response to the sequel to Sail Away has been so overwhelmingly positive! Thank you to all the reviewers and all of those who have followed and favorited this story, I really hope I won't let you down.**

 **COUPLE OF THINGS BEFORE WE KICK OFF**

 **-For everyone who is caught up with the show, you might recognize some of the dialogue happening, but it's mostly because I loved it, and because I thought a lot of it fits the story. I won't be copying the show's story line, but I will take a lot of it as creative inspiration for the way the war will develop (Dany is very OP with her 3 dragons, but I don't know about all the character deaths happening, at least not so quickly, that is a fair warning that a lot of people will die in this sequel, and it'll suck but it is necessary)**

 **-I've decided to try and post more often, so a lot of these chapters will be shorter than they used to be in Sail Away, so we're probably looking at 20-25 chapters by the end instead of 10-15.**

 **-You'll also notice that with the story moving to Westeros there will be a lot more characters, so the scene changes will have the house words of the character whose POV is up, in case they don't have that (Like the Unsullied) I'll come up with something else that will be on the author notes.**

 **-For Dany and Yara/When Two main characters are in the same scene, I might include both words separated by a slash, with the most senior/more powerful house going first. (ie: If Sansa and Steffon share a scene, the scene break will be -** _ **Winter is Coming/We Stand Together-**_ **)**

 **-Jon Snow gets his own words, separate from Sansa, Bran and Arya, because… well if you're caught up with the show, and know R+L stuff you'll know why.**

 **Enough of me though! Let's get to the episode!**

Fire and Iron

A War To Win

Dany sighed deeply, arms crossed over a marble handrail, overlooking the docks, where crates and horses and men were being unloaded tirelessly and efficiently into the dark granite castle, decorated with dragons by the Targaryens of old. Her hand ran across the surface of the handrail, sighing softly, almost as if in a dream.

"I promise the day break is far more beautiful in Pyke"

The strangeness of her surroundings were not helped by Yara's current outfit. The usual plate of armor and cloak was replaced by a brown linen overcoat with white sleeves, open enough at the top to give her skin some welcomed salt air, dark cotton trousers and the usual black boots that steadied her on land and sea. Despite the changes, Yara seemed at home, she was home, finally back to Westeros, and the unfamiliarity unsettled Daenerys to no end.

"Does it feel strange?" Yara's calloused hand reached out to Dany's soft arm, a small featherlight touch that sent shocks rushing through the young Targaryen queen "To be here, in this home you have always heard about"

"Would it be wrong of me to say yes?"

A small laugh escaped the ironborn, with a contagious grin that Daenerys realized the world never got to see-would never get to see-because it was just for her. Yara leaned her back against the handrail, making sure that her hand would be lightly resting against Dany's, providing all the support she knew her wife would need at the moment.

"Your family ruled over this land for many years. All your brother ever wanted was to come back, and that is all you have also wanted. Making it somewhere, something that has always been your goal, it is very daunting love"

"Westeros is very daunting"

Their weeks at sea made Yara and Daenerys very attuned to each other's quirks; Yara understood the different meanings of Dany's sighs, Dany was able to pick up on Yara's need to be alone sometimes (something she had learnt the hard way). At this moment, Yara was thankful for that insight, Daenerys' body language was begging for validation and distraction, and watching her men unload the iron fleet was not going to help.

Daenerys was startled out of her staring by Yara taking her hand, and softly pulling her towards their bedchamber "Come with me"

"Where do you think you are taking me Targaryen?"

Yara laughed, her voice coming out husky with desire, the near malevolous look provided the black eyepatch her wife sported made Daenerys squirm in her boots, if ever so slightly, the mischievous smile making her insides tingle "To paradise Greyjoy".

- _We Do Not Sow_ -

" _Tristifer Botley_ "

Theon rubbed the stubble on his cheeks, the little control he had gained for himself when his ship docked on the port at Pyke slipping from him. Watching his home, after having to leave over and over was hard, watching Botley of all people sunder about as if he owned the place made him revert to a place he thought he had abandoned a long time ago.

 _Theon was rarely allowed contact with people back home. The iron islanders had to become used to the idea that they no longer had a prince, an heir of Greyjoy lineage, so the few people he had ever met did not bother with him anymore. But sometimes he would receive a raven. Ned Stark was not heartless enough to extract Theon from everything he knew—At least not cold turkey._

 _That's where young Theon found himself, sitting by Maester Luwin in Winterfell's library, reading a letter from his sister Yara. In it she spoke about a boy Theon was well acquainted with, Tristifer Botley. He had been sent to be fostered by their mother, Alannys, to cope with the loss of all three of her sons. Yara was not very pleased, from what little she could see, Botley was going out of his way to get_ very well acquainted _with the now eldest Greyjoy sibling._

The uncomfortable feeling in Yara's letters, few as they were, did not go away. Botley kept pushing the boundaries up until the day Alannys Harlaw was dead and making her way to the serve the drowned god. At a point, Balon Greyjoy had thought about the possibility of bethroding Yara to Tristifer; with his wife dead the possibility of him siring another heir, a male heir, was unlikely, and he refused to let the Salt Throne go to Victarion (who had no ability to rule over anything other than his own ship) or even worse, to Euron. Eventually, the idea was forgotten about, and Yara began training to have her own ship, and rule the islands; she forgot about Theon, Theon forgot about her,and they both forgot about Botley.

And here they were again, Theon faced with the hell that Yara had faced, alone, in a very large and fairly empty castle, with Tristifer Botley; an annoyingly insistent Tristifer Botley.

The harsh wind whispering past the window of his room, the room Botley had so generously provided him with, took Theon out of his stupor. The waves relentlessly slamming against the rocks that held castle Pyke reflected what his life was doing to Theon, a relentless slamming of one thing after another, trying to bring down the already unstable foundation he was perched on. A bad breeze at the wrong time would do more to knock him off that a million things coming at him, Tristifer asking about Yara's marital status and refusing to allow him passage inside the Throne room until he answered might just be what would do it.

"Greyjoy?" _And here he comes again_.

"Botley" Theon crossed his arms over his chest, spreading his legs wide, anything in body language that would tell Tristifer to know his place, and back off, Theon would do "This is not the time for social calls"

"The it is proper that I am not here on social duties" the sneer on his mouth and something shining in those green eyes that Theon could not decipher did more to make him shiver than the freezing winds coming from the sea "I will put it simply Greyjoy, your family is not wanted on the iron islands anymore"

"I figured that" Theon and his men had seen the half burnt kraken banners on their way into the castle, the looks of disdain in the faces of the few men that had stayed behind did not supply much comfort to the ironborn; all of the sudden traveling with Theon Greyjoy was a million times more dangerous than it had been when they had left for the north, where he was not well liked either "But me and my sister are not Euron and Balon Greyjoy"

"You are their kin, it is all the same to us" Tristifer picked off invisible dust from his cloak before crossing his hands in front of him, laying them on the pommel of his-well clearly not his-sword "I offer you a way around that. Marry your sister to me, you will keep your rule and she will be Queen of the iron islands, with me as her King of course"

The idea of telling Tristifer that Yara was already married, to a powerful queen with 3 gigantic fire spitting flying lizards was tempting, but his instincts told him that the small moment of happiness would not be effective in the long run.

"I am in no rush to consent to my sister marrying anyone. If I were to do that, she would have me drawn and quartered. The journey has been very long, so I will head to my quarters now, sleep well Botley" with all the posture of a prince, Theon walked away, swagger in his step, until he rounded the corner, breathing hard from the effort. One thing was true, he had not lied when he said that it had been a very long journey, now… Now he might just need a miracle.

- _The Lone Wolf Dies, But the Pack Survives_ -

When one spends time in positions of power, or living with the family that holds all the power in the north, one tends to recognize a power leech. Jon Snow, King in the North, had never been more thankful for his ability to recognize a man who spins stories in order to get something from someone with more power than themselves; since departing from the twins, this sense had been working double time, Petyr Baelish being the cause for it, he was also the cause for Jon sleeping with one eye open and a dagger beneath his cloak since they had begun sharing a roof.

"Snow" Tormund rode up to meet the king in the North, making sure that his movements were brutish enough to scare Littlefinger away and give them some space "Why is the backstabber lord coming with us?"

Jon smirked, making sure that Lord Baelish was far enough away that his comments would not be heard, although he probably could imagine what was happening "He's the Mallister's liege lord, there is a lot of kissing asses and licking boots south of the wall, and this is part of that"

"North of the wall we would have left him in the cold, without food, let nature take care of him"

"Everyone in Westeros at some point must have wished that upon him" Ser Davos interjected, taking advantage of the new space that Littlefinger had allowed, perhaps not out of fear from Tormund Giantsbane, but out of caution "we should be arriving at Seagard by daybreak your grace, and if the winds are with us, we should see sunrise in Pyke"

"Is it possible to ask Lord Baelish to remain in Seagard until our return?"

"Your grace?"

"I've a feeling Tormund will toss him overboard if he were to ride with us to Pyke" a loud unapologetic laughter coming from the large wildling man let Ser Davos know that Jon was not remotely joking.

- _Hear Me Roar_ -

"Ser Jaime Lannister here to see you, your grace" a small mousey servant attempted to stay as still as possible from the doorsill, waiting for the instructions from the all black clad blonde queen.

"Bring him in. And bring more wine, don't make me have to ask again, keep the decanter full" the small servant practically ran out of the room with the large silver object in her hand, before the bright green angry gaze of the Lannister queen could settle on her. Once outside she nearly crashed into the large figure of Jaime Lannister, clad in golden armor and a crimson red cape covering his shoulders.

"Ser Jaime, my apologies my lord" the small whisper caused Jamie's heart to go out to her, she was not the only servant-or the only person-in the Red Keep who seemed afraid to come anywhere near the Queen's residency, it was entirely possible that the smoking pile of ash and blood where the sept of Baelor used to stand would have something to do with that.

"Do not worry about it" the servant ran off, with her head down, before the small smile Jamie offered before it could reach her eyes. "Cersei"

"Took you long enough" It was a near shocker to see Cersei, standing in the balcony holding a glass of wine, with the rising smoke of the ruins framing her figure; at the same time though, it seemed a self fulfilling prophecy, something that he had felt was coming, for a long time.

"My apologies your grace, taking back an ancient castle and riding from the riverlands is rather time consuming. The commander of the Lannister forces does not exactly possess horse riding magic"

"You should have been here" Jamie took a step back from his position when Cersei turned. Her green eyes, those he had loved and lived through for so many years, were now cold "have you been to see Tommen?"

"Your new hand thought it prudent that I come up here before I see our son"

"He betrayed me" Cersei turned her back to him again, and while Jamie wanted to put the dark thoughts aside, it was entirely possible that she was smiling, admiring her handy work.

"He was alone. You left him alone. Tommen was a boy and he needed his mother"

"You left me alone when I needed you" their argument had gotten loud enough for the Kings—no, Queensguard—standing outside to be on alert. The fact that it was the mountain caused Jamie's hand to rest near enough to his sword, in case he needed it "I did this to fix his mistake and he betrayed us. He was weak, and perhaps it is better like this"

"Cersei he was young and inexperienced and we failed him, that doesn't make him a traitor" Jamie huffed a breath out in exasperation, his foot hesitated in the air, thinking that perhaps approaching the volatile monarch was not the best idea for his health "if dying because of their mistakes makes them traitors, Joffrey, Myrcella, father, they're all traitors"

"Don't you dare…"

"you accusing Tommen of being a traitor is worst than what I'm saying to you"

"I loved them. I loved them all but they're dead and anything I say will not bring them back" Jamie approached her slowly, and Cersei did not know what it meant, that she didn't feel an overwhelming need to have him near her, but the idea of him not being around was worst, so she pretended. The queen's face twisted into an expression of pain and loss and longing, one that even Jamie couldn't see past. When she felt his arms around her, a sob that would put any actor in the known world to shame echoed across the room "we are here and we are the ones who matter Jamie, we need to stay together"

- _Fire and Blood/We Do Not Sow_ -

"My Queens. Your Lord Hand and Lord Varys request your presence," The small, quiet servant stuck her head in the room, making sure that she had knocked before entering. Yara and Daenerys were loved and respected by their entire staff, but it was also common knowledge that a closed door with a hung cape meant they wanted privacy.

The room that they had allocated to themselves in the grand castle was, in of itself, a reflection of the theme of the large island. The four poster bed was made of dark wood, and had a carving of a dragon, spreading its wings above the header. The room had a large living area, and a large balcony where the sizeable fleet was visible. Most if not all of the furniture in the room was dark wood, with the only speck of light being the white bed sheets the queens were wrapped in.

"Please inform Lord Tyrion and Lord Varys that we will meet them as soon as possible" Dany's soft voice sighed out, she was completely covered by the bed sheets, her head resting on Yara's chest, enjoying the light touching the hardened ironborn captain was giving to her hair, it almost seemed criminal to have to leave the room.

"Yes my queen" the servant made sure to replace the dark cape on the hook of the door before making her swift way down to the large stockroom, where all the staff was working double time to get the castle into working condition.

"It is so incredibly painful to have to plan a rebellion when we're so comfortable just resting here"

"I thought Westeros getting a whiff of how soft hearted Yara Greyjoy-Targaryen Princess and Queen of the Iron Islands-really is, she rather lay in bed all day than plan to raid and pillage"

"They would crown me Queen of everything if they heard I rather lay in bed with the most beautiful woman in the world my love"

"You are incorrigible" Dany pecked the scar that split Yara's right eyebrow, making sure to smile when her wife sighed happily "we have a war to plan"

"We have a war to win"


	3. Lady Reaper

***white flag of peace waves behind a tall wall to protect me from any anger that is left from all this hiatus I've had you on***

 **HEY REALLY QUICK! I decided to give Yara and Dany a new saying of their own for their united house. House Targaryen will still be "Fire and Blood" and House Greyjoy will still be "We Do Not Sow" (so Victarion and Theon keep their words), but Yara and Dany will get "Fire and Iron" whenever they show up. That being said, enjoy!**

Fire And Iron

Lady Reaper

- _Winter Is Coming-_

"Sansa?" Arya knocked on her sister's door softly, in all honesty not feeling like she had the past few years, it was very strange to even think about being able to talk to her sister or see her again.

The heavy door swung open to reveal the redheaded, who had a writing quill hooked behind her ear, her hands stained with ink in various parts, a mess of parchment and scrolls on her desk, and on every possible surface in the room that wasn't already occupied.

"Arya!" The eldest Stark's hands went to her dress, trying to straighten herself up a bit, as unfamiliar with the situation as Arya was, and also very uncomfortable with her sister seeing the usually regal and posh Sansa Stark in a tizzy "it's late, are you well? Do you need anything?"

"No, no nothing like that" Arya awkwardly patted her sides, trying to keep her hands occupied "I uh, I haven't seen you today is all, wanted to make sure you're eating right" ' _yes, tough self sufficient Arya Stark, trained by the faceless men to be a ruthless killer, checking on her sister, get a grip Stark_ '

"I'm afraid I'm going to disappoint you" Sansa's face turned into a scowl, gazing to the nearly untouched plate on her bedside table, only thing missing seemed to be bread and lemon cakes "Jon left me to make sure everything is running in the north and we have our new plan for the wall ready to go so… uh… would you like to come in?"

"Me? No, I'd just get in your way" it was almost comical to see Arya's eyes open widely like an owl at the thought of having to write anything. Not that she couldn't, she hadn't in awhile, but she was never as handy as Sansa, and if even her perfect prim sister was a mess she would only make it worst.

"You can help me organize the scrolls. Not being home makes information a lot harder to keep in order. I've had the new maester send every scroll until we go back, hence the mess"

"If you're sure…" Sansa smiled and opened the door wider, inviting her sister in. It was strange for both of them to be so civil, they had never interacted so much, at least not nicely, but here they were, with a new opportunity to try harder

"Take a seat wherever you can find and a handful of scrolls,"

"I feel as if I will sit on a handful of scrolls—sorry"

"I've been making an effort not to myself" Sansa sighed, picking up a couple of goblets from the desk, passing the larger one to Arya. The younger Stark took a whiff, her eyes opening possibly wider than the had before "Sip slowly"

"But this is… you don't…"

"You would be surprised at the things I do" Sansa took a swig of her drink before sitting "Anything that mentions the wall or any of the castles goes here. Winterfell, Bear Island, the last Harth and Moat Caitlin here. All other castles here. And everything else you can leave on the desk"

"Yes mom" the two sisters smiled at each other, before getting to work on the copious amount of scrolls "oh, and Sansa"

"Hmm?"

"I took you for a wine girl, but Ale? I'm impressed"

- _The Lone Wolf Dies, But The Pack Survives_ -

"Not a single nosy noble in 20 years, and two would be royalty in two days, must be our lucky week" Jon tried to not let the annoyance show in his face at the iron born man who was nonchalantly taking up his time "you're looking for that cockless bastard Theon Greyjoy?"

"We are looking for prince Theon, yes" Daavos made sure to get ahead of Jon's possible explosive answer "I assume he's come through here?"

"Up in Pyke. He's not wanted here"

"We will see about that"

- _We Do Not Sow_ -

Theon went through the meticulous process of removing and adjusting his gloves for the thousandth time that morning, it was nearly as calming as sharpening a sword with a wet stone, which he'd be doing if Tristifer hadn't taken all their weapons upon entering Pyke. Theon suspected it was only to annoy him by wearing his sword, but it was something that remained to be seen. For now all he had was the comforting feeling of the gloves in his maimed hand, and the steady thoughts of throwing Botley into the freezing waters below his window.

"wakey wakey prince Theon" Tristifer sundered in, a Cheshire wide smile on his face and a spring in his step—there's no way he didn't know how much Theon hated him right now "you have a visitor"

"is it the sanity that everyone in this bloody island seems to have lost when they let you in here?" shoving his shoulder into the smug wannabe lord, Theon sulked all the way to the entrance, where the brooding Jon Snow stood, flanked by Ser Daavos, Thormund Giantsbane and the shadowy ever present Littlefinger "Jon… I mean, your grace"

"Theon" Jon scowled at Theon's back, about as amused as the Greyjoy himself with the new self styled Lord of the Iron Islands "and you are?"

"Lord Tristifer Botley" smirk on full force he approached Jon, not as a Lord approaching a King but as an equal "what brings you to these shores, King Snow"

"a traitor, for one" Jon strode forward, making sure to look as imposing as his smaller frame allowed, hand on Longclaw. His other than landed on Theon's shoulder "and Prince Theon for another"

- _Family, Duty, Honor/ We Stand Together_ -

"Lady Roslin" Steffon knocked softly on the heavy oak door, through which the giggles of a young boy could be heard, if he put his ear on the door and just listened.

The door was unexpectedly swung open, nearly knocking the new lord of the crossing off his feet. On the other side stood a man that had clearly seen better days, auburn stubble covered his cheeks, and his previously long and matted hair was cut short, his very skinny frame was draped with heavy dark wool, the silver fish on a field of blue and red emblazoned on his chest, the one thing that wasn't different in him was the burning anger in his eyes.

"Frey"

"Lord Edmure. My apologies" Steffon scratched the back of his neck, unsure where he stood with the man his great grandfather had held prisoner and away from his son and wife "how are you enjoying your new accommodations"

"far better than a dirt floor and chains" Edmure crossed his arms over his chest, clearly not amused and certainly not in any mood to see any Frey "if you would excuse me, I have time to make up with my son and wife"

"wait!" Steffon stuck his hands out, to prevent the swinging door from closing, Edmure turned to look at him with disdain "I–Uh. Is it possible for me to speak with Lady Roslin? It is an important matter"

"Last time a Frey spawn said that to me I ended up in chains"

"Edmure!" Edmure's young wife, Roslin, walked up to the commotion happening at the door, with their young son in her arms "Steffon is not like my grandfather. I believed we had settled this matter!"

"it never hurts to check again" Edmure grimaced at the young lord once more before turning towards his wife, who offered him the dark haired blue eyed boy in her arms.

"Steffon, hi" Roslin closed the door softly behind her, double checking around the corners that no one was spying on them, although sometimes it seemed as if the walls in the Twins had ears "what can I do for you"

"I promised I would check on you when everything settled down" Steffon's green eyes were filled with kindness, the complete opposite of the former lord of the twins "Lord Tully seems to be settling"

"it's a blessing from the seven that Hoster was blessed with a kinder soul than grandfather" Roslin took Steffon's hand in hers, making sure that he was keeping eye contact with her "what Walder Frey did as lord of the crossing does not define you Steffon. And it does not define our family"

"I'm glad someone here believes so" the young Frey smiled softly, squeezing Roslin's hands "how are you and Lord Edmure?"

"he's committed to making up the time we lost. And he is a good man, he will treat me well"

- _Fire and Iron_ -

"your grace, the bulk of your forces have landed in Dorne, they're awaiting our signal to carry out their missions" Varys' hands, always tucked into his sleeves, writhed with excitement. He missed being back in Westeros, the idea of playing the game for the good of the realm and its people "Obara Sand and Daario Naharis are waiting on your leave to set sail towards Casterly Rock"

Yara splayed her hands out on the side of the map, right in the spot where the Dragon and Kraken rested in the small islet of dragonstone. Her steel gaze scanning the map for any and all kinds of tactics she could think her and Daenerys' enemies could employ "any news on our other allies?"

"The northmen have split their forces. Jon Snow and the Lord protector of the Vale have sailed towards the iron islands to help Prince Theon secure your homeland. The north is now in Sansa Stark's hands, she will be staying in the twins until her uncle, Lord Edmure, and his family are moved back to Riverrun"

"ah, my beloved wife. Glad to see she is doing fine on her own" Tyrion smiled at the table laid out in front of him, his eyes staring intently at the snarling wolf amongst the towers in the twins "what of my sister?"

"Cersei has ordered _Lord_ Jaime Lannister to lay siege to Highgarden"

"Lord?"

"Ser Jaime has been dismissed from the Kings Guard and reinstated as Lord of Casterly Rock"

"father must be rejoicing" Tyrion's hand flew over the lions in Kings Landing, and trying to think like Cersei "If Jaime has been ordered to lay siege to Highgarden, who holds the rock?"

"Reginald Lannister is in charge of the garrison that holds the rock" Varys' head tilted to the side, watching the hand of the queen squinting his eyes at the large carved map, you could almost be blamed for imagining he could see the individual players' thoughts and their moves.

"Tyrion…"

"Reginald is a weak man whom my father always said was only in his seat due to birth, and was an incompetent fool" Tyrion scratched the beard that covered his cheeks with a pensive expression on his face "Reginald Lannister is quite possibly one of the few Lannisters left who counseled faith to crown when Robert's rebellion was at its peak; even if my father never listened to him. If there's a man we could negotiate with, it's him"

"we do not have a bargaining chip to force him to the table"

"like hell we don't" Yara smirked at Tyrion and then turned her face over to her wife "did you not once say that ironborn were only good at pillaging and raiding ? Well today may just be your lucky day"

"I don't follow?" Dany tried to put herself in the mindset of her most trusted advisors, but it was clear that in the politics of Westeros (a land she should have known and should be hers) she was going to continue falling short for a while.

"Reginald Lannister may be many things you golden cunts seem to share" Yara twirled a wooden lion in her hand, her apparently innocent smile almost daring Tyrion to say anything "entitled, self involved, thinks the world moves by their will and grace–"

"is this going anywhere?" Tyrion huffed out, not annoyed with her bad mouthing the Lannisters, but annoyed with generalizing him into the equation.

"–but he is not smart, and he is not cunning" the lion in the ironborn's hand landed on Lannisport, only a breath away from Casterly Rock "and he is ever so sentimental; why, as far as my memory serves me, Reginald's home is Lannisport, not the rock, and his wife and children still live there"

"we will not use children as bargaining chips Yara"

"I am not saying we do, your grace. But I am most certainly implying we… Persuade Reginald's wife into inviting her husband to the negotiating table, with a little help from some rugged ironborn"

- _Winter is Coming_ -

"I could never understand why you enjoyed learning how to do this with mother" Arya took a swig from her goblet before tossing a parchment to the smallest pile "sitting inside, reading scrolls, I still don't understand it"

"I didn't enjoy it Arya" Sansa giggled at her sister's bemused look, taking a swig of her own goblet as well "but, as the oldest girl I had to learn, and you refused to, so I had to try twice as hard"

"If you didn't you certainly never showed it"

"it is not a coincidence that, other than Jon, me and Robb were the most glum of us all. He had to try harder so mother wouldn't fit about Jon, and I so she wouldn't fit about you. In our own way, we were trying to protect our siblings"

"that didn't keep her from forcing me to knit"

"And you were horrendous at that too" both sisters laughed, it was fun to reminisce, and it was a step in the right direction to try and put their differences aside, even if it was just for the night.

- _Fire and Iron_ -

"Daenerys, can you just talk to me, please" Yara's hands scrunched up her hair angrily. They had been arguing circles around each other for half the night, and it seemed to have no end.

"There is no point in talking to you, Greyjoy, if you will not listen to me"

Yara groaned into her hands, pacing towards her wife, who seemed to prefer looking at her dragons hunting in the water than she did her "I don't understand what it is you're so angry about. You knew what we were coming to Westeros to do. Did you expect me to sit by your side the whole war, watching my men fight and die for me, never doing my part"

"You know that is not what I expect of you" Dany crossed her arms as she turned to face the ironborn queen "And that is not what this is about. I don't want you to go on the raid, and that is all"

"You are not going to order me around" Yara's hands dropped from her face, an angry expression revealed itself "You are my wife Targaryen, and you will not order me like one of your lackeys"

"I am your queen Yara" Dany raised herself up to her full height, even if she had to tilt her head upwards to look at her wife, the regality and power she carried was obvious "And I gave you an order"

"I am a queen, same as you; you are my queen by choice, Daenerys" Yara huffed angrily, not willing to back down from the dragon queen. While staring at her purple eyes however, she could see hesitation behind the anger, causing her expression to soften "What is this really about"

"I've already told you I…"

"no. You've told me what you want me to believe" Yara sighed, tilting her wife's chin upwards with her hand "Dany… "

"I lost a son and a husband, but gained 3 dragons and a purpose" Dany wrapped her arms around herself, her head resting just under Yara's chin "for the longest time I believed that my children and the throne were all I would ever be allowed to have. But now I have you. And I know I will not be allowed to have everything I want" Yara could feel the wetness of Dany's tears soaking through her shirt, and she couldn't help but feel her heart breaking for her young wife. Her arms wrapped around the small frame of the silver haired queen, giving her the assurance to continue talking "I know warriors die in battle, and that you will lead your men no matter how much I forbid it. I just wish I could keep you from danger a bit longer"

"don't we all"

- _Hear Me Roar_ -

Reginald Lannister had always been aware of the disdain Tywin had had for him while he lived. It was hard not to, when every word that came out of his mouth was scoffed at. And even with him dead it felt like this room, like this entire castle was embedded with Tywin's hatred, it felt as if he got scoffed at every time a word came out of his mouth; it was slowly and surely driving him mad.

"Tywin you bastard" the blonde man raised his goblet, like toasting the invisible ghost of the Lannister patriarch. What he wouldn't do to get out of here.

The large oak door creaked open, a small man with a balding head and a long beard, dragged down by a chain walked in, with a small raven scroll in hand, interrupting the thoughts of the already angry lord of the rock "my lord". The maester walked out as quickly as he entered, purposely avoiding any further unnecessary conversation with the moody Reginald.

The scroll was sealed with the one sigil that might make the walls in the room quake with anger. The three heads of a dragon, though it did look peculiar, since their tail was wrapped around the tentacles of a kraken.

 _Your wife plays a wonderful host, lord Lannister. Hope you follow in her footsteps._

 _~Lady Yara Greyjoy, Queen of Salt and rock, Lady reaper of Pyke, consort of her majesty Queen Daenerys Targaryen~_

The regent ruler of Casterly Rock had little time to be outraged or worried for his wife and children, or even confused at the titles the eldest daughter of Balon Greyjoy was so willfully granting herself, when the bells of the city began ringing.

"My Lord!" a man dressed head to toe in crimson and black armor ran into the room, sword and helmet in hand "the port, you need to see"

"I want all my commanders in the barracks immediately"

Reginald ran out as fast as his legs would allow, not really caring how it looked, mostly seeing as every other person in the rock was running the same way and at the same speed. In the port a single ship could be seen sailing, her hull as black as night as well as her sail, painted with a bright red three headed dragon, its tail wrapped around the tentacles of the golden kraken of Greyjoy. Everyone however seemed more interested in the speck that could be seen floating—no, flying, towards them, and steadily growing from a speck to something that was simply impossible.

"Impossible"

"No my lord, just highly unlikely" Reginald spun around at breakneck speed to find Yara Greyjoy, flanked by a small squadron of Unsullied, a golden head of hair poking from behind the imposing pirate looking woman.

"I received your raven a few moments ago"

"oh apologies, it was meant to arrive a little earlier, but we had a small change of plans, didn't we Lady Lannister?"

"what have you done to my wife Greyjoy"

"me? I saved your wife Lannister. And your children" Yara waved, ordering the unsullied to open their ranks. Out came two small golden haired children and a frightened woman, who lost no time running into her husband's arms "when we arrived to Lannisport your wife was hosting… Less respectable company than me and my men"

"I find myself hard pressed to believe there is such a thing"

"you wouldn't once you realize your home is now that of Euron Greyjoy"

In that precise moment the speck in the horizon that had so intrigued the inhabitants of Casterly Rock and had been temporarily ignored in favor of Yara's appearance took precedence once again, as Rhaegal landed with a loud thunk on the closest tower to their area, growling at the soldiers who were stuck between pointing their spikes at the angry monster or satisfying their overwhelming need to run away as far and fast from the area as they could.

- _ **The Iron Dragon**_ **-**

 **Wow Holy crap guys I didn't even realize how long it had been since I updated until I started writing again, I am so sorry for that super lengthy absence. I've had a long period of writer's block and 0 free time, it is a disastrous combination for writing, but here I am. You'll hopefully get the next chapter this week, it'll be sort of an implied flashback… You'll see it when you see it.**

 **Anyways and like always, thank you for sticking around, much love to all the people who have reviewed, favorited and followed both myself and my stories, it helps a ton to know that someone out there is actually excited to read my weird ramblings.**

 **Hopefully I'll see you guys sometime this week with the next chapter!**


	4. Strong Armed Diplomacy

Fire and Iron

Strong Armed Diplomacy

- _Fire and Iron_ -

"I must say, your plan is very bold Greyjoy"

"this is what I do best Lannister. Greyjoys may not be the best miners, farmers or rulers, but we are sailors and we are raiders" Yara rested the heel of her boot on the table and her hands on the back of her head, not even attempting to keep the smirk off her face "Five gold dragons also say half of your brothers troops will shit themselves before nightfall"

"no bet. I would fall prey to that surprise, and I'm the smart Lannister"

"I am glad my lord Hand is not entirely full of himself" all the people surrounding the table shot to their feet when Daenerys, clad in black leather and wrapped in a scarlet cape walked into the room, followed closely by Greyworm, Missandei and some of her Dothraki generals "are we ready to leave?"

"nearly there my queen" Yara smiled uneasily about the one part of her plan she was not entirely confident with "do you want to go over the details one more time"

"to delay your discomfort? Not particularly my love" Dany smirked, condescendingly tapping her wife's cheek a couple of times before dragging her to her out the door "it will not be as bad as you expect it to"

"no, it'll likely be worse than I expect"

-oOoOo-

Yara had rarely needed to cling on to anyone or anything in all of her life. Being a Greyjoy, and the daughter of Balon Greyjoy, meant she never really received much on the end of hugs and affection. That of course was until now.

Yara's arms tightened more strongly around her wife, not out of want but out of deep rooted fear. It seemed that every time the damned dragon dipped in the air her wife laughed, it was like she was doing it on purpose! There were however no chances of telling Daenerys this, since Yara's mental energy was entirely focused on not letting her arms give.

The plan had seemed good on paper, the time it would take to take Black Wind down to Dorne and around to Lannisport was inefficient and frankly a waste of resources. So Dany had proposed the obvious; Tirius and a large chunk of the Iron Fleet were already docked in Dorne. From there, a small detachment of ironborn and unsullied could be put together and used to attack Lannisport. Paper and reality were however very different things, and right now it was the worst plan Yara had ever thought of.

Very rarely did Daenerys Targaryen feel free, from the pressure of governing, the pressure of being everything everyone expected her to be at her young age; it was a lot of pressure that she believed it was not fair to ask a break from. So the few moments where she could be with her dragons, or with Yara, were few and far in the between but no less precious. Right now, with Drogon dipping and diving, and Yara clinging to her for dear life, she felt content—and a little amused.

-oOoOo-

"oh precious dirt how I've missed you"

Daenerys rolled her eyes and turned from scratching Drogon and Rhaegal scales to look at her not usually dramatic wife laying on the dirt, enjoying the feeling of firmness and the grounding it gave her.

"must you be so dramatic Yara. You live half your life in water, not exactly firm"

"Aye, but while the Sea is a fickle mistress it is not as big a bitch"

Daenerys dropped to straddle her wife, smiling softly at Yara's subconsciously placing her hands on Dany's hips "seeing as I'm the only one who can ever be on the air, am I the bitch queen as well?"

"your mistake is assuming I was speaking of the winds" Yara's self satisfied smirk turned into a barking laugh when an indignant Daenerys gasped and smacked her shoulder "Soon enough you will be the queen of all the land to add to your titles, I don't think it is fair to take queen of the winds from you"

"ever so charming, Greyjoy"

Yara smirked, and before Daenerys knew it she found herself smacking against the dirt, with Yara nestled comfortably between her legs, pinning her in place with her hands on the silver queen's wrists.

"speak softly and act swiftly should be my words" Yara leaned down to place a kiss on her wife's lips when the thundering of horses hooves on the mountainside snuck up on them. Ever so helpful, Yara helped Daenerys to her feet, making sure to help her look as regal as ever "we will continue this discussion later"

The anxiety and the reality of the moment set on the young queen, this would be the first time since Yara's injury that they would be separated, this time for the gods knew how long.

Her head tipped upwards to look at her wife. As usual the top half of her face was obscured by the eyepatch she wore, although that didn't keep the black spider web like remnants of the injury to sneak out, giving her a rugged look. Her facial expression always stuck between scowling and smirking, complementing that aura of power and danger that lured men and women alike. How she ever thought she could resist the irresistible combination was a wonder, her wife was the living definition of irresistible. It almost seemed like Daenerys was a magnet to this type: rugged, charismatic, dark types. It was almost impossible, however, to forget the other part of the connection, all of the people who shared this characteristic seemed amazing at dying as well. The thought that Yara would suffer that to achieve Daenerys' goal gave the queen an uncomfortable feeling. Not that it hadn't been brought up in conversation before, but it was clear that until Westeros was conquered and the threat of imminent death was gone, Daenerys would never stop thinking Yara would be taken from her.

"when I see you again the West will be yours"

"so long as you assure me I will see you again, I will welcome the gift you give me"

"you're not getting rid of me that easily Greyjoy"

"I'm counting on that Targaryen" Dany pulled Yara's head towards her and kissed her for all she was worth, putting every ounce of belief and hope in the beautiful pirate queen as she could.

"I love you, take care of yourself until I come back"

Dany nodded and made sure Yara was seated on a horse and on her way to the water gardens with Rhaegal following closely before she took off on Drogon to fulfill the second part of their plan.

- _Hear Me Roar_ -

Jaime Lannister had been called many things during his life. The best swordsman in the world, the youngest Kingsguard, the kingslayer, but he had never been called a bad battle commander, and he would be damned if this siege is what did him in.

Highgarden was in of itself a fortress, with enough food and water to last two winters and the stubbornness of its lady to hold the castle, Jaime was in for the wait of his life. The one thing that mattered is that the Lannister forces were standing outside the doors, and if Lady Olenna sneezed they would know, and sooner or later they would break her and her walls.

Boy was Jaime Lannister, the best swordsman, the youngest Kingsguard, the Kingslayer, in for a surprise.

- _Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken_ -

"Lady Greyjoy, welcome to Dorne" Yara, in her usual stomping manner, swaggered her way into the spacious and well ventilated room, where Ellaria was laying on the couch, fanning herself nonchalantly.

"Ellaria Sand, always a pleasure"

"it is actually Martell now, at least according to your dear wife"

"I'm glad to see this new status has not ruined you my lady"

"always the charmer Greyjoy" Ellaria stood to meet the seafarer, whose stance didn't seem to change a bit, being used to the woman and her advances "pity that you're married now my lady"

"pity that my wife is your queen you mean. Pardon me saying it but I don't think you're one to care for someone's marital status"

"I don't care for the titles of the spouses either Yara" the older woman tapped Yara's cheek before pacing away "your ships are ready to sail"

"is this your discreet way of kicking me out of your land Ellaria, I thought you more perseverant than that"

"the war isn't over, and I know how to play the waiting game"

Yara laughed loudly before bowing to the ruler apparent of Dorne "as I said, it's always a pleasure", she turned on her heel and walked away, making sure to put a firm swag to her step to give Ellaria a show of what she couldn't have.

- _Fire and Iron/We Do Not Sow_ -

Yara headed down towards the docks, where the small light Dornish ships were dwarfed in contrast to the huge Greyjoy battleship with the dark sails. On board was her always angry and determined uncle, yelling orders left and right.

"Captain, someone here to see you"

Victarion put down the rope in his hand to turn at the dock, where his niece was already climbing on board "Yara, I was not expecting you so soon, come back to learn from the master at sea so soon?" his niece laughed loudly, enjoying the fact that for once her uncle seemed to be in his element.

"Do not forget it's your queen you're addressing Greyjoy" the seriousness of the statement did not reach Victarion, who took it in stride as it was meant to, and left the sailing orders to his first mate.

"To what do I owe the pleasure Yara"

"Conquering Westeros apparently takes more politics than the bloodshed I expected. I need you to take me to the rock"

Victarion whistled lowly, clearly Yara refused to do things by halves "I thought the plan was supposed be between me and the pompous arsehole"

"Did we not speak of plans never surviving contact?" Victarion shrugged in acceptance "I need to speak to Reginald Lannister's wife"

"And yours is fine with this plan?"

"She is. Though she did say no seducing nor bedding anyone while I am away" Yara grabbed hold of _Iron Victory's_ helm as the ship was untied from the dock "I have to speak to her husband about rallying the West to my dear wife, only way I get to that conversation is through some strong armed diplomacy"

"Scaring the wife into compliance? Seems fair"

"And brilliant. Now if you please" Yara left the helm to the first mate while grabbing her uncle to head to his cabin "I have had too long a day and I need some ale"

- _Fire and Iron/Hear me Roar-_

Yara Greyjoy prided herself in not being surprised by anything, although that notion was very challenged recently, and thus it seemed that every time she went on a mission somewhere she would be surprised.

This time the surprise came from Lady Dyana Lannister herself. The woman who welcomed her into the castle at Lannisport was not very special, or so she seemed at first light, however the fact that she agreed to Yara's plan on first pitch was the doer.

"I'm sorry Lady Lannister, you agree? Just like that?"

"Just like that Lady Greyjoy. I refuse to let myself, or my children, or indeed my family pay for that crazy bitch Cersei's actions." Dyana Lannister dropped a goblet full of wine in front of both Victarion and Yara, being a good host to convince the ironborn that she was true "I stood by my husband when the Baratheon rebellion was raging and he counseled loyalty to the Targaryens. I had no love for King Aerys but we did understand the horrible path Robert Baratheon would take Westeros through, and horrible path he did"

"Your family seemed to do remarkably well under the Baratheon rule"

"You would assume so. However, the rock is now dry, all the Lannisters have is a bad name and empty coffers. The Targaryen queen seems our best bet before Cersei runs us to the ground"

"And how do you know your husband will agree with you Lady Lannister"

"behind every powerful man is a more intelligent woman. Reginald will listen, I will take care of that"

Yara and Victarion looked at each other, resisting the urge to shrug and smile, and yet it seemed that everything was too easy.

"My lady" a man in crimson armor barged through the door, frantic "a ship has been spotted coming this way. The scout says its deck is bright red"

"Euron"

"Pardon?"

"Euron Greyjoy, how he knew we were coming here beats me. My lady if we are to see your husband, you and your children need to come with us, now" Victarion ran out of the room to prep the ship while Yara accompanied the captain of the garrison to collect Lady Lannister and her children to _Iron Victory_.

"Hello children, it's time for murder" Yara barged into the room, axe in hand, a sing song tone in her voice. The two young children in the room together with their mom let out a blood curdling scream that alerted the guard outside. Yara, who was extremely excited to get back at Euron that she refused to pay mind to her actions "time to sail off Lannisters"

"I find this incredibly inappropriate lady Greyjoy" Dyana huffed and grabbed her children, who were carrying two rucksacks with clothes, and headed towards the ship where the ship hands were getting ready for a fight. Victarion ordered the ropes dropped and headed to open sea, Silence in close pursuit.

"MY DEAR NIECE, I'VE COME TO FINISH THE JOB" Euron's maniacal laughter came from the ship that was hot on their heels, one that do as they may Victarion could not shake off.

"How did he know I would be here?"

"We will figure it out when we shake him. Open the rows, all men below deck! Prepare the slings"

"Lady Lannister If you please" Yara pointed below deck to the captains quarters while holding on to the helm "this is going to get ugly"

"Get us to casterly rock safe, do what you must"

"Believe me lady Dyana, we were planning on it. MEN HOLD ON"

Yara waited long enough for the Lannisters to get below deck to turn sharply, putting iron victory parallel to Silence, keeping her away from it's boarding plank. On deck the mutes that were part of Euron's crew were running about getting their slings and hooks ready, Euron at the nearest deck ready to board.

"Euron"

"Yara, Victarion. Pity this must be the end"

Without awaiting for the end of the pleasantries, Yara called fire. Tens of solid steel balls and harpoons were launched across the deck of Iron Victory straight to Silence, splintering the wood construction and on occasion striking or impaling the men on board Silence. Last to strike was Victarion's favorite weapon, a fishing harpoon outfitted like a slingshot, a steel tip ripping through the mast and recoiling as the men on Iron Victory turned on its launching wheel.

Euron ordered the few men who were not on the ground to prepare to board Iron Victory when Yara turned sharply the other way, giving the back of the ship to Euron, pushing the men to row double time to make a gap between them, enough to keep a strong lead. Euron ordered the ship to turn and follow, then, from the sky hailed Rhaegal, setting a wall of fire protecting the escaping ship for a few seconds before flying off to follow.

"Keep rowing men, we need all the leagues we can get between us before going with the wind"

"Captain, Silence will not be following for a while"

Yara turned towards the wall of fire that kept Silence where it was, clearly hearing the screaming orders of her usurping uncle, which were growing fainter the further they got. Yara smiled towards the sky where the dragon was flying lazily, following the ship as closely as it could

"That's my boy" Yara ordered the sails raised, and grouped with Victarion to prepare for their arrival to Casterly Rock.

 **I won't even bother with flag waving this time, I have nothing but apologies for all of you amazing people who have been waiting for me to get over my huge writers block.**

 **So new year new revitalised sense of writing! The good thing is I blocked out most of the plot, so I won't have to come up with it as I go anymore, which means you're going to get chapters way more often! (And hate me because it will be bittersweet)**

 **A heads up, this is a far more story geared story than romance geared, but I still won't put the main people aside. As a heads up I will also he pulling a show thing and using the near teletransportation powers that show characters seem to have, hope it won't bother much!**

 **All that being said, I hope everyone had a kickass 2017 and that 2018 is way better! Once again, thank you for sticking with me, and as always your comments are welcomed.**

 **-IronDragon**


	5. What is Dead May Never Die

Fire and Iron

What is Dead May Never Die

 _-Hear me Roar-_

Jaime and Bronn paced up and down the lines of siege for the whole morning, continuously checking for gaps in their security, and silently for once, both thinking about their own business. Jamie about Cersei, as seemed to be the case more often than not, and Bronn about the gold he would get once the high garden idiots realized they couldn't hold the castle for much longer, not with the airtight security Jaime seemed intent on building.

"Are we done rechecking these for the fifth time?"

"What? We have to make sure the siege is secure. If a single scout gets out of highgarden all of this falls apart" Jamie grabbed his sword when he heard a rustling behind him, to only find one of his men feeding his horse.

"Right" Bronn paced away whistling. From the moment the siege had been mounted it was clear that, despite the seeming obvious reason for it, the former Lord Commander of the kingsguard did not have his heart in it, and at this time he was more than overcompensating. I am going to owe Tyrion a lot of gold if this is about Cersei bloody Lannister.

"Bronn"

"Yes Ser Jaime?"

"We are doing this for the wrong reasons, are we not?"

"When aren't we?"

 _-The Sword in the Darkness-_

Eddison Tollett never expected to end up in this position. He had been at the wall for many days, he had seen many men in power go by, and his fair share of Lord Commanders; and yet he never expected to be sitting in their seat once they were gone. For christ's sakes, his brothers in the watch had been calling him Dolorous Ed, essentially since he got to the wall.

Yet here he was, putting up with all the impossible task it was to man the unmannable wall, with at least the free folk helping the staffing gaps all he had to care for was keeping the wall intact as long as humanly possible, definitely better said than done.

"Lord Commander" one of the brothers stuck his head inside the door of the small office "someone is approaching the wall"

"You know how to open the door, don't you?" Ed huffed, it was true that a lot of the brothers were new, but it was getting ridiculous with some of the things they would show to report to him.

"From the other side"

-oOoOo-

Ed thought it was long overdue to have the wall passage sealed, with no more free folk to keep an eye on, and absolutely zero need to go into the frozen wasteland full of angry frozen skeletons, the passage across the wall was a hindrance more than a benefit. Being inside the tunnel, waiting for who knows what that had been spotted to approach did not make him think any differently.

"Who goes there?" the men of the watch left the tunnel with their torches to approach the two individuals going towards them. In front was a girl as best as they could guess, judging by her long hair, dragging a slightly younger boy in a snow sled.

"My name is Brandon Stark, my brother Jon Snow was Lord Commander of the night's watch"

"Brave man, stupidly loyal. My name is Eddison, I am Lord Commander"

"Did Jon…"

"Not dead m'lady, or well, he didn't stay dead. He was in Winterfell last I heard, with your sister. Help her" Ed instructed the men next to him to help drag in the sled where Bran was laying, and to provide them with new clothes and food, having been north he knew what someone coming back would want the most "how did you survive? We barely made it out alive from beyond the wall"

"You would not believe it if we told you"

"Believe you me, at this point I would believe anything"

 _-Fire and Iron/Hear me Roar-_

"Well?"

"In your wife's defense, I might have overextended the urgency of the situation. Euron showed in a single ship, one that will probably remain at port for a while"

"Which still means my home is that of that pirate"

Yara smirked, seeing as she was the utmost living embodiment of a pirate, sword, ship and eyepatch, it made her laugh that the ironborn were called that at all times "one worst than myself, I assure you"

"So what is it that I can do for you, less worst pirate"

"What you counseled many years ago. Swear fealty to Daenerys Targaryen and I'll be on my merry way, and you'll have one less pirate to deal with"

Reginald turned towards his wife, whose intense green eyes were telling him all he needed to know about his next steps "Is that all?"

"That is all. Pledge that the west will not fight against her when we march for Kings Landing, and you will not be blamed for any of your less reputable family's misdeeds" Dyana tightened her grip on the man's arm, and like a soldier receiving his marching orders he agreed immediately "will my family keep the rock?"

"Stay away from the battle, or better yet help us, and the Lannisters can very well keep the mountain that shits gold"

When Yara and Reginald shook hands, which in all honesty felt like shaking Lady Dyana's hand through a proxy, a man in crimson armor and a white cloak barged through the door, the incessant ringing of the warning bells behind him "my lord—"

"For fucks sakes"

 _-Hear Me Roar_ -

Bronn found Jaime Lannister in the same place he had been sitting in since the had returned, on the large oak chair that sat overlooking the mighty castle they were laying siege to. One could be blamed for assuming Jaime could see through the rock, at Lady Olenna Tyrell giving the Lannisters the middle finger more often than not during the day.

"Still doubting?"

"We are wrong, yet here we sit" Jaime, who at this time had slipped off his golden hand in favor of giving his healed stub some air, had never felt this lost, and so far from himself "I lay siege to a castle of a woman whose family I helped murder"

"Helped? You were not there"

"And that makes me an accomplice. I did not stop Cersei. She killed Margaery, she killed Loras, she killed Mace Tyrell, she is responsible for the death of my son—"

"Now he's your son?"

"They're all dead now, what does it matter if I'm their father" the conflicted Lannister took a swig from his wineskin, never losing sight of the highest tower in the castle, where Lady Olenna's quarters were located "they're all dead, and here I am, alive, laying siege to their last grieving family member, to their home"

"You can very easily dismantle the siege. Your family pays their time" Bronn used his hand to gesture towards the large grouping of soldiers, though Jaime did not turn to look "your family pays my time, and believe me I too rather be elsewhere"

"It's simply not —"

His words got caught off when the loud blaring of a horn came from where his furthest scout was placed. Typically this would not be alarming, the scouts were green boys frightened of their own shadows, what made it alarming was the loud thundering resounding on the ground, something big was heading their way.

As he slipped his golden hand on, Jaime realized how poorly executed this apparently well placed siege could be. To their backs a large castle full of well fed and well rested men, to their right, mountains that would take too long to ride through, to their left a dense forest, and ahead the thundering sound.

Before orders could be issued, a sound that only could be compared to the beating of sails to the wind rose behind them. A great big shadow rose above that of Highgarden, a shadow that wasted no time in hailing fire upon the siege weapons and equipment wagons near the walls of the castle.

Lannister soldiers began running as far and fast as they could, and yet they too began realizing there was nowhere to run. Past the mountains another thundering sound came, one that came accompanied with a warcry of history, a chanting only heard–and feared–in Essos. Thousands of men in horses stood at the edge of the mountain, and hundreds of perfectly organized garrisons of Unsullied snuck past the field that was their only way out. Above the air the hissing of the angry dragon above them made more than one man lose their lunch, or soil their pants.

What finally did Jaime and Bronn in was the doors of Highgarden flying open, a few men in horses stepped out, escorting a smaller individual whose hair, bright white in contrast with the blazing sun and holding orange tinges against the blazing fire background, made her unmistakable.

"You were saying" Bronn's hand was on his sword, his knees were crouched, analyzing every possible exit around him, and finding none.

"That it might just be that simple, to be wrong, and then be stopped"

 _-Winter is Coming/We Stand Together-_

"Lord Frey, we were not expecting you" Roslyn was the first to notice the figure standing at the door of the dining hall, her husband and his nieces too engrossed in speaking with the little boy who was, at this point, wearing half his breakfast.

"My apologies, I didn't mean to disturb" Steffon walked in with a large woman in armor and a smaller man with a bright red leather uniform "these two have come to see Lady Stark"

"Lady Brienne, how good to see you well" Sansa smiled, widely than most of those in the room had seen in a while, and welcomed the newcomers to their table "Podrick"

"M'Lady"

"I trust your way here was not too troubled?"

"Getting out of Riverrun was, as Podrick puts it, a piece of cake" Brienne kept her hand on her sword, ready to spring into action as most northerners seemed to do while staying in the Twins "Arya?"

"How—how do you know my sister?"

"Not too long before I camped in Winterfell to try and keep you safe, I tried to help Arya get away from Sandor Clegane"

"And took the bloody hound down to near death. My congratulations on your skill Lady Brienne" Arya tipped her cup towards the warrior, making sure to keep it away from baby Hoster who seemed intent on getting his hands on everything.

"My mission would've been complete if you had come with me after Lady Arya"

"Sansa is the Lady. And we had different paths to follow, and yet here we are"

"That is true"

"Lady Sansa" Steffon Frey stepped behind the two women, a kind smile on his face "may we speak for a moment?"

"Of course Lord Frey. If you'll excuse me" Sansa stood up from the table and followed the young lord out the door, the suspicious stare of her uncle Edmure following closely until they were out of sight, and even then it felt as if he could still see her "what may I help you with?"

"You seem to have a better handle on this being head of a house thing, I was wondering if you would be open to helping me run the twins" Steffon linked his arms behind his back and pulled as welcoming a smile as he was able "it would seem fitting to have your help"

"How so?"

"You lost your home, and it lost its way. But now its yours again, and seemingly prospering, that's something the Frey name could use"

 _-Fire and Iron/Hear me Roar-_

"That's quite the entrance you made my lady"

"That's quite the siege you've mounted my lord" Dany smirked towards the commander of the Lannister forces, not oblivious to the many scared men her troops were rounding up "It is also my understanding that a Queen should be addressed as your grace, Ser Jaime"

"My queen lives in Kings Landing"

"That is bull and you know it" on a galloping stallion arrived Tyrion, smirking at his older brother for his foolishness.

"My dear brother. How goes exile?"

"Apparently better than serving Cersei" with the help of the special harness on the horse, Tyrion made his way down to the ground, no longer cutting such an imposing figure "I am sorry, for what happened to Tommen. He was a good boy"

"And he was a horrible king. He is in a better place now"

"Such seems to be your family's prerogative to breed horrendous rulers" Daenerys statement was loaded with daring Jaime to say anything about her father, whose crimes seemed to be rivaled only by those of his sister "but you would know about those, wouldn't you Set Jaime?"

"I would know about how to kill those rulers"

"that works for us, seeing as Cersei Lannister fits the bill" Danys voice held steel and anger, and yet Jaime could tell that if she wanted to she could be more vicious about it all "but I could not ask this of you, so I will ask for your surrender, because I know there is no option for you here"

Jaime turned on his axis, looking around at the men who were surrounded by the unsullied guard, the whole thing cordoned with Dothraki on horses, and a garrison of Tyrel soldiers marching out the massive castle doors. Bronn, whose situation was no better being held at lance point by a man who looked to be commanding the Unsullied, shrugged: he had told Jaime he had better things to do than sit out here, though being here wasn't better.

"We officially surrender to you, your grace" Jaime dropped his golden sword on the ground, other soldiers behind him who still held swords at all followed suit.

 _-Fire and Iron/We Do Not Sow/Hear me Roar-_

"How could he have possibly known I was coming here. For all he knows I was headed to Pyke, or the edge of the fucking world" Yara smacked her sword into the table before the soldier could finish delivering the ever so familiar situation.

"My Lord, there is a large squadron of soldiers approaching Casterly Rock"

Victarion stopped pacing to turn and look at the rushed man "Wait soldiers–on foot?" the man nodded repeatedly which only added to Victarion's discomfort "Euron's ship was too damaged to move, but he could not have gotten that many men, that soon"

Yara turned to the door, while Victarion headed to prepare his ship, where men were barging in to move Reginald and his family out of the rock, somewhere safe and far. The captain of the escorting party began relaying the news that the men marching to the doors were not flying a banner, but they were definitely forewarned of how and when to attack the rock.

"Lady Greyjoy, it is a pity that our meeting must end like this" Reginald put his wax sigil on a couple of letters, and handed them to the captain of his household "however, you have my word, and that of the West. We'll stand aside from the fight, and assist if needed" the final scroll was turned towards her, where a space for her signature was left "if you please, your grace?"

Yara signed and sealed the scroll, wishing the Lannisters a safe trip to wherever they were headed, and proceeded to where she could see the invading force.

It was hard to not recognize who it was, mostly after being forced to live with those men for so much time. They may not be flying a flag, but the head of the column was terribly indistinguishable–hate them as she may, it was hard to miss Euron Greyjoy accompanied by Daario Naharis.

 _-Winter is Coming/We Stand Together-_

"My lady?"

Sansa turned her head from the overwhelming pile of scrolls that laid on the table, Steffon Frey sitting next to her, surprisingly lax, sleeves rolled up and hair mussed from stress. The handmaid that came up to her was holding a raven scroll, and ran out of the room before Sansa could thank her.

"The world doesn't and because Sansa Stark takes a break"

"I hardly call this a break Lord Frey" Sansa smiled and broke the seal on the scroll, hardly paying attention to the sigil, assuming that it came from the maester at Winterfell.

 ** _Dear Lady Sansa,_**

 ** _I hope this letter finds you well, and soon. I write to inform you, before anyone else does, that I've made it home. I have much to tell you, and much we need to speak of._**

 ** _A Stark needs to stay in Winterfell, so I assume I will see you soon—don't worry, I still remember how to light a fire._**

 ** _-Brandon Stark_**

Sansa reread the letter once, then twice, and ran out of the room as quickly as manners allowed, without really listening to the young Frey, to find Arya and Brienne. The war continued returning family home instead of spreading them apart, could it really be possible for something to go their way for once?

 _-Fire and Iron/We Do Not Sow-_

The walls of Casterly Rock didn't hold for long, it had been remarkable that the held at all, seeing as the skeleton crew that was manning the castle was barely worthy of its name. Ironically for the fleeing ironborn, the surrender of the bulk of the Lannister army in highgarden presented a huge problem of logistics for them now.

"That no good son of a bitch" Yara smashed her way through every door and barrel in her way to Iron Victory, at this point she was begging to run into the commander of the second sons, or her uncle, or any of their lackeys for that matter if it meant she could get her frustration out in a violent way. By the time she had arrived, all of the available ships had left port, Iron Victory the last ship docked.

"Yara, if we are going to leave, we need to leave now" the sinking feeling that they were quickly tightening their own noose by not leaving kept increasing, and the battle hardened man began realizing the direness of their situation "Yara?"

"If they're here, if that no good traitor is here, where is Obara Martell?"

"What in the name of the drowned god are you talking about, we need to leave"

"No, you don't understand. If she's with them then I need to know, I need to get the Martells away from my wife. If she's not, we need to save her, she's heir apparent to Dorne and too important to leave with them"

"Yara they won't tell you where she is, if she were with them she would have rode with them"

"You're smarter than I ever gave you credit for, brother" Yara and Victarion drew their weapons at the sound of men pouring out of the castle, the insane ironborn at the head of the group "missed me?"

The men on the ship began lifting rope and dropping the sails to leave, just keeping enough hold to allow their captain and their queen to hitch a ride before it's too late. Due to the small space only so many men could try to attack the Greyjoys, and yet it seemed they would pursue them relentlessly.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity but was probably only seconds, Victarion and Yara found themselves faced with Euron, who they both knew was no slouch in his combat prowess. Ultimately, they were between a rock and a hard place, or more literally, between a watery grave and an insane madman.

"Yara you need to leave"

Euron cackled loudly and smacked the blunt of his axe into the side of his brothers leg, wanting to pronounce the suffering as long as he could. Victarion rammed Euron into the dock floor, giving Yara the clearest opportunity to flee into Iron Victory.

"LEAV—omph" Euron punched his brother to get him off his body, in this game the important piece was Yara, Victarion was expendable.

The ironborn captain tried to paw for his axe, blood blocking his vision. For a split second, Yara's world slowed to a halt, trying to find a way to fix what was about to happen. With a sadistic smile on his face, Euron wiped the blood on his face and picked up Victarion's axe.

"You will regret crossing me Yara" without a second thought the sharp glinting axe slammed into Victarion's back, crunching through his black cloak and his glinting iron armor—fitting with Euron's cruelty, Victarion would die slowly, drowning in his own blood.

Her uncles grey eyes looked at her, blood spewing out of his mouth, his breathing coming out ragged. The truth of his mortality was catching up with Victarion in these last seconds, and with what little energy he had left, he mouthed "Run"

In the same slow motion Yara turned towards the last rope that docked Iron Victory, using it to climb into the ship while ordering the men to have her sail away. Euron ripped out the axe from his dying brothers back, and half heartedly threw it at the retreating back of his niece, embedding it into the side of the retreating ship.

The very last thing Yara saw, as they rapidly escaped from the docks of Casterly Rock was Victarion Greyjoy's body being tossed into the water, his blood tainting the water around him red for a small second before he sank under, the ironborn crew at the docks seemingly cheering over something Euron held in his hand.

 _What is dead may never die._

 **Don't kill me. Hope you liked it!**

 **FYI: Here's the new hopeful update schedule, Tuesdays and Fridays at 11:00PM.**

 **IN MY DEFENSE THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO GO UP AT 11 BUT SNOW AND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WEREN'T HAVING IT!**

 **Thank you once again for the comments and the love, I shall see you all next week!**

 **IronDragon**


	6. A Choice

**Fire and Iron**

 **A Choice**

Jaime Lannister was more than familiar with being in an unwelcoming room; after gaining his horrible moniker, the Kingslayer was seldom welcomed anywhere, unless it was a bar full of men wanting to know what it had been like, and he had almost never found himself in those situations.

In this case, he found himself in an extremely unwelcoming room. The daughter of the man he had killed to get his nickname, the matriarch of the family he believed he had a hand in exterminating and, the daughter of a man whom his father was responsible for murdering. The only one who had no reason to hate him was his own brother, that seemed like an unfair situation. And if it were to get ugly, him and Tyrion (who honestly would side with his queen and not him if push came to shove) would not stand a chance against Daenerys Targaryen, Olenna Tyrell and Nymeria Martell. In his one hand less state, he would barely be able to fight the queen of thorns, nevermind the mother of dragons or a renowned warrior.

In a behavior very unlike herself, Nymeria Martell was acting extremely relaxed, almost giggly around the former lord commander of the kingsguard. "Lord Jaime Lannister, how goes the humble pie you've been served recently". Jaime refused to dignify the statement with an answer, choosing to stay quiet for his own good. The complete opposite of his reaction came from Bronn, who had picked that precise moment to enter the room as Jaime's attaché. The former sellsword couldn't help but laugh loudly all the way to his seat.

"Ser Jaime, I feel I have to inform you of this" Daenerys passed on the scroll she had been reading until she was distracted by the laugh. It had been previously sealed with the prancing Lannister lion, and declared the West's loyalty to Daenerys Targaryen, as signed by Lord Reginald Lannister and Queen Yara Greyjoy—Queen Daenerys' consort?

"A lot of things to inform me about you mean. Queen Consort Yara Greyjoy? Really?" Dany's face scrunched up in anger at the man questioning her marriage. How dare he question her about whom she chose to love "pardon me, what I meant was, it seems unlikely, a Targaryen and a Greyjoy"

"Precisely" Daenerys put her hands on her lap, her face no longer betraying any emotion "the Greyjoy family, particularly Prince Theon and Queen Yara, did not stab mine in the back when loyalties were tested" the dig did not go unnoticed around the room if the throat clearing or laughter meant anything, "but I believe who I marry is none of your concern, who your family now owes its loyalty to is"

"I surrendered my troops to you. My family has pledged to support you. Therefore, my sword and my counsel are yours so long as you need them" Jaime took a deep breath, knowing that what he was about to ask of Daenerys would most likely get him killed if Daenerys didn't want to hear it "however, you can't ask me to kill Cersei" Tyrion coughed into his wine at the way Jaime had voiced his request "pardon me, what I meant was, I am asking you not to, begging you not to"

"Love does make people dumb"

"Be that as it may" Daenerys turned to give Nymeria a dirty look, clearly expressing that her comments were not appreciated at all "I would not ask that of you, not unless it became extremely necessary"

"That woman is a rabid dog, she murdered my son, my grandson and my granddaughter, what more do you need?"

"I understand your pain and your loss Lady Olenna. But while Cersei Lannister concentrates her forces in King's Landing, we have no need to get rid of her" Jaime straightened in his seat, knowing the next few seconds would define whether he would walk out of here with his head on his shoulders, or if he would become a dragon entree "that is where ser Jaime here comes in"

"Your grace?"

"You will be responsible for handing Queen Cersei Lannister the terms of surrender we have prepared for her; you are also tasked with informing her that these are non negotiable" Daenerys passed the stoic man the scroll in her hand. The terms were fairly simple, with little room for misinterpretation, this had Tyrion written all over it: Vacate the misgained iron throne, leave Westeros' shores before Queen Daenerys sits the throne to never return, relinquish any and all claims to Casterly Rock, the title of Wardeness of the West, or any other titles associated with that of the Lannister family. This was the easiest way to let Cersei leave and not worry about retaliation. "Any objections?" a servant entered the room and dropped off a letter to Tyrion while he read the terms, and Jaime couldn't help but feel that his window of opportunity to save his sister was closing on him fast.

"Would it change anything if I had them?"

"Not particularly. But if the messenger believes in the message, I find it makes the message more affable"

"It will spare her life, and my conscience, that's all I need. I will deliver these to King's Landing your grace" Jaime and Bronn stood from their seats, bowed and left the room before the woman could change her mind.

"Your grace" Tyrion's mismatched eyes were wide with worry, the letter in his hand crumpled by the same emotion. Daenerys turned her eyes equally worried, not many things made her hand nervous, the chance that something out there did was personally a frightening thing "Casterly Rock was attacked by the second sons, it seems Daario Naharis has allied himself to Euron Greyjoy" the room was filled with shocked faces, and yet it felt like the hammer had not dropped "my informant tells me that one of the Greyjoy envoys was killed in action"

Daenerys' ears began ringing, she could see the man in front of him moving his lips, and the members of her council moving fast to find a way to reinforce their flank and get news from Pyke, but she heard none of it. All she could think about was Yara--Yara was dead, dead for her cause.

None of the small council members could really say when the queen disappeared, but they could remember the slam of the heavy oak door.

 _-Winter is Coming-_

"you can't just leave" Lord Edmure understood better than anyone the burning need to run to family. He had done everything he could to get back to his son and wife, but this was reckless on the face of it.

"he's your nephew Edmure" Roslin was trying her best to calm her husband. He was a good man with a scarily short fuse, and they needed to discuss the situation calmly "the girls haven't seen him in many years"

"I understand your anxiety uncle, believe me" Sansa side eyed the door, almost feeling that someone was listening in, despite the small garrison of Tully and Stark guards parked outside their quarters "I'm not happier with the situation but we've got no choice"

"you always have a choice" Edmure swiped his face with frustration. "if you leave, who's to say what the Freys will do"

"Edmure" Rosslyn scowled at the man, who almost always forgot who her family was.

"you know what I mean. It's happened once already" Sansa nodded, giving him acknowledgement that she was at least listening "The twins need a firm hand, the Wardness leaving will take that firm hand away. I am still not well enough to scare my own son, nevermind the lot of them" his hand made a distracted gesture that meant those outside the door.

"I'm not leaving the twins without leaving someone to keep the Freys in line until I return" Sansa looked over at the corner where Arya sat with Brienne and Podrick. The young Stark looked as pleased as Edmure did with the situation.

"you're joking"

"do I look like I'm joking, Arya?"

"you can't be serious. I can't rule the twins" the young girl shot to her feet in shock "I can't even rule over my own closet. How am I supposed to take care of a castle"

"I'm not exactly leaving you alone" the redhead looked around to emphasize her point. She would of course take Brienne with her, but her uncle Edmure would be a good mentor while she was gone.

"I… You're drunk aren't you?"

"Arya!" Edmure and Roslin looked scandalized that the girl would suggest such a thing of her sister. Sansa just looked partially amused, partially done with the conversation.

"it's too early in the morning for that" Arya snorted a laughter, at least her sister could lighten up "You'll take care of the affairs here while I return, and you'll keep me up to date of the comings and goings of the Freys. And that is final" the young girl scowled, but understood just how much faith Sansa was putting on her. For all intent and purposes they were strangers. Related strangers but strangers nonetheless "anything to add uncle?"

Edmure looked at the younger Stark girl, seeing a lot of his own stubbornness in her. This would be interesting, and hopefully not catastrophic "safe travels niece, give my best wishes to Brandon"

 _-Fire and Iron-_

The beating of the wind against the sails, and even so against her hair, had always been kind of a calming draught for Yara. Ever since she had been allowed on a ship, it has become cathartic to sit on the bow of her ship, and simply listen to the howling wind.

And yet even that wasn't doing it at this point. Yara could feel a hurricane brewing in her, one that the wind wasn't calming, it was pushing towards destructive faster even. She wasn't a fan of Daario to begin with, but she had truly hoped his allegiance to her wife, or his near obsession, would keep him in check. The fact that he had taken part in the raid that eventually killed her uncle didn't make her any happier about him. Looking for Obara Martell was definitely a brilliant excuse to put a sword through him.

"Your Grace" Darrion Fayrwnd, the Iron Victory's master of arms had been preoccupied with leading the ship to a deserted island near Casterly Rock, seeing as the captain was seemingly preoccupied, approached the conflicted queen with hesitation "Your grace, we've arrived"

"No one sends word to the mainland" Yara tightened her grip on the axe that once belonged to her uncle "we're going to hit them, with everything we have"

"your grace, don't you think it's important you tell queen Daenerys you're alive?"

"I'll speak to my wife later. Right now, we have a Greyjoy to avenge and a Martell to rescue"

 _-Fire And Iron/Hear Me Roar-_

Tyrion knocked on the Queen's door softly, he could understand her heartbreak, and although it wasn't the plan to cause her pain with her political marriage, he couldn't help but feel bad.

"your grace" the door squealed open to reveal Daenerys Targaryen, wrapped in a black cloak, looking at a map of Westeros. Her silhouette obscured by the very few candles burning around the room "your grace, I…"

"how many months will it take me out of course to march on Casterly Rock?" from his bottom up position Tyrion could see the tear tracks on the young queen's face.

"My queen?"

"how many?"

"your grace I don't think it's prudent to—"

"TO HELL WITH PRUDENCY!" Daenerys smashed the cup that had been tethering on the edge of the table against the wall "TO HELL WITH IT ALL"

"Daenerys I understand—"

"SHE WAS MY WIFE TYRION. SHE WAS MINE AND THEY TOOK HER FROM ME" Tyrion cautiously stepped back from the unleashed fury of the monarch "I loved her. I love her still. And they took her from me. I AM THE QUEEN. THEY KILLED MY WIFE AND YOU ASK ME TO BE PRUDENT"

"we don't know that yet my queen. There was more than one Greyjoy on the mission to the rock"

"I don't care" the silver haired queen took a deep breath and cleaned her face of any tears. Of any sign of weakness "I don't care how long it takes. Or how prudent it is. I am going to find Daario Naharis and skewer him, I swear it"

"do we have a plan?"

"I will march with the Lannister force on the morrow. I'll take back the rock, and put his and Euron Greyjoy's head on spikes" Daenerys turned heel to look back at the map. Despite how dim it was, the candles provided enough light for Tyrion to see her cloak properly. A golden kraken whose tentacles were wrapped around a crown and the tail of a three headed scarlet red dragon. It was their marriage cloak, Daenerys was clearly not going to let this go.

The small Lannister man sighed, slowly pulling the chair closest to him "Do you have a more detailed plan?"

"If I did, do you think I would still be here?"

"fair enough. Unfortunately surprise will not be on your side…"

 _-Fire And Iron-_

Yara knew fully that surprise could not be on her side. One way or another, Euron and Daario would be expecting her to make an assault on the rock. Be it for boneheaded revenge, or to rescue the heir apparent to Dorne, they would see her coming a mile away, at least she would it she were in their shoes. With not enough men to lay siege to the castle, or the patience for such an endeavor in any case, the queen of the iron Islands resolved to do what her people do best.

The ironborn on Victarion's ship had faithfully put their lives in their commanders hands. That the deceased commander was the uncle of Yara only helped keep them faithful. Her clear-headed approach to their assault plans cemented that faith, Yara was after all a captain in her own right and their rightful queen, but here was her time to prove it so.

"are we clear on your orders Fayrwnd"

"no contact with the queen or her staff, hold the ship at anchor until you return" Darrion begrudgingly accepted the orders, simply because one should have a good reason to not inform one's wife that one was not killed. Particularly if said spouse had 3 fire breathing lizards. One of which was a few yards away hunting for fish "might I add something"

"when has me ordering you to stay quiet ever worked Darrion"

The man smirked, joined by the chorus of nervous chuckles, Yara however did nod her head, a good commander always knew to heed suggestions. Also these men were putting their lives in her hands, the least she could do was let them have a say.

"I still think informing your wife that you are alive is for the best" he raised his hands to stop Yara's protests, it's not like they hadn't been through this conversation "I do understand your reasons. But keeping her in the dark probably means she will divert the bulk of her forces to Casterly Rock"

Yara considered the words for a second, and shrugged "Lannister would not let her divert from her mission"

"bold of you to believe Tyrion Lannister could stop her" the master of arms stood back for a second, purposely giving Yara enough room to breathe "bold of you to believe Daenerys Targaryen would not burn the world to ashes to avenge you"

"you don't know that" the proud Greyjoy could feel her insecurities clawing at her. _Worthless. Broken. Useless_. There was truth in her silence to the main invading Targaryen force, if Euron were able to track them down to their hiding spot they would not survive. If Euron were able to fool Daenerys into a trap because of a captured letter, Yara would never forgive herself.

And yet she knew, ever since they touched based on Dragonstone, that her feelings of not bringing enough to the table, and of not being enough for her regal spouse were gonna come back to bite her.

"I know not one of us could stop you from burning the world down if Daenerys was killed, your grace" Darrion Fayrwnd did not rise through the ranks by being stupid.

He knew how to appeal to his bone headed liege lords. The Greyjoy family were brave, and smart and bold, but they were also ridiculously stubborn and idiotic at times.

Speaking with authority and giving Yara the respect she deserved as Queen would hopefully go a long way to rattle her "allow me to send a rider when you leave. By then, it'll be too late for Euron to do anything, he will be a sitting duck, and we will put your wife's mind at ease"

The men who were leaving with Yara held their breath, if Euron was on alert at the possibility of Yara coming to the rock, he'd be on pinpricks if word got to him that Daenerys Targaryen was marching on him with a huge army. An animal on alert was bad, one that feared for its life was worst. Yara nodding gave them newfound courage. Little did they know they were dealing with a deranged animal that cared little for panic. This one gladly poked at the sleeping dragon.

 _-Fire and Iron/Hear me Roar/Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken-_

"your grace" Nymeria Martell knocked softly on the door to the Queens quarters, where Tyrion and her were drawing up plans to storm the rock without compromising their gains on the south, or their attack on Storms end and Kings Landing. The young Martell girl had a scroll in her hand, sealed with a crowned Kraken with a crow on its head.

"come in" Daenerys sipped her hand over her face. Already fearing the worst.

"this came in a few moments ago, from the rock" Daenerys took the scroll away from Nymeria's shaking hand. It was tough to see a warrior she admired crumbling under the fear for her sister. Dany almost wondered if Yara's last moments looked anything like this. She's not dead. She's not dead. She's not dead. It was getting harder to extinguish the hope, although the scroll certainly strangled that flame.

"your grace. Would you like me to read it?" Tyrion noticed the color draining from his queen, and felt the guilt ridden again. Without a word, Daenerys passed him the scroll and braced for what was coming.

" _Your…_ " Tyrion's eyes widened, and he almost wished something cataclysmic would happen so he didn't have to read. After waiting a second or two, and realizing it wasn't going to happen, he forged on " _Your wife is dead your grace, her corpse adorning my new hall. The little Dornish princess will soon join her, after giving me an heir or two. My traitor brother, and all his little sailors are at the bottom of Sunset Sea. The iron islands will soon be mine too. If you want your iron chair, and your life, come and see as I conquer the world for you. And then be my queen_ ".

"he has my sister" Nymeria gripped the edge of the table until her knuckles turned white, scenarios of what was happening to Obara running through her head "your grace, I request leave to bring my sister back"

"I cannot grant that" Daenerys shook her head, holding in her anger as best she could to have a clear head.

"to hell with you all. I am going to bring my sister back home"

"Lady Martell, please sit. You will not be granted leave because I need you" Nymeria held the door handle stiffly. Her whole posture rigid. "I need every skilled commander to help take back the rock"

Tyrion turned his head to the silver headed queen, wondering what was going through her head. He had just read the nail in Yara's coffin to her, and here she was. One could almost say she looked bored.

"your grace?"

"I am starting to believe that Euron Greyjoy needs to be put down like the rabid dog he is, and put down hard" Daenerys pointed towards the seat the sand snake had just vacated, clearly asking her to sit "my wife would have asked for patience. I am inclined to believe she would have disapproved of any of us marching blind to avenge her. Your sister probably would as well"

Nymeria's eyes widened, as she processed the full contents of the letter "your grace I'm sorry for your loss. Queen Yara was an amazing warrior, and a good leader"

" _what is dead may never die_ " Tyrion whispered solemnly, he could see the tears shining in Daenerys' eyes, but she would remain strong for the memory of her wife, something the Lannister heir could admire "my condolences your grace"

"thank you. The only way we can honor Yara's memory is by continuing our mission" the young queen gripped her cloak harder, maintaining her cool facade best she could "any ideas?"

 _ **-TheIronDragon-**_

 **Wow it's been a long time. I'm so sorry. Please don't kill me. I got a new very demanding job that has genuinely drained all my creativity. I have rewritten this chapter at least 5 times. And I didn't want to put out something I wasn't happy with, especially after the long wait.**

 **Couple of notes:**

 **The letter Euron sends is partially inspired on the Bastard Letter (or the Pink Letter) Ramsay Bolton sends Jon before the battle of Winterfell.**

 **One thing you're going to notice is a different relationship between Arya and Sansa than the one in the show. To be honest, I don't like how they're portrayed, even though they are very different people and spent a lot of time apart. They only have each other now, and I feel that no matter how ruthless, there's still some Arya left in there to drag out what little there is of Sansa.**

 **AS ALWAYS. CRITICISM AND IDEAS ARE VERY WELCOMED!**

 **I promise it'll be less time between this chapter and the next, although I can't promise when I'll be back, it won't be that long.**


	7. Hope Is So Fickle

Fire and Iron

Hope is so fickle

 **WARNING: This chapter contains allusions to physical abuse, torture and sexual assault. An asterisk will be next to the P.O.V break to indicate where this is happening. If you're sensitive to this topic or could consider it a trigger please feel free to skip it, most of it is for character building and emotional impact and will not entirely affect the plot. Look for a small summary at the bottom without the possible trigger.**

Do you know that feeling, when there's a person that does not belong in the conversation. And try as you might you cannot shake them? Like a cold that will not go away? That's what Jon and Theon were suffering through. What they had been suffering since Tristifer Botley had decided to plonk himself in the middle of every conversation they were having. Whether Yara was part of what they spoke about mattered little to the usurping swine, as Tormund had so eloquently put it.

At the moment they were being hosted by the will and grace of his royal highness king Botley, while they attempted in vain to shake him once again.

"I don't see how any of this conversation could have anything to do with you" Jon signed exasperated, rubbing the stubble on his face with his ungloved hand.

"any and all things discussed on and about the iron Islands are my business" Tristifer tipped his goblet back knowing full well how annoying he was being and really not giving a damn "I've claimed the salt throne, if anyone is not important in this conversation its Theon"

"his sister is the rightful queen of the Iron Islands"

"she will be. Once you agree to marrying her to me"

"She already is a queen" if the room were silent you could hear Theon's muscles tightening, and his promised resolve to not sock Botley in the face breaking "you are out of your mind"

"you must be confusing me with your uncle dear Theon" the young man made sure to smirk before turning his attention to the annoyed King in the north "this situation is simple your grace. I will give you all the help you need, you need just say the word"

"what word?"

"The King in the North has more power to grant me what I want than my claim does" Jon narrowed his eyes, indicating his patience was running rather short "promise that, once the mainlanders are defeated, I will be the sovereign of the isles, and that Yara Greyjoy will be promised to be and no other"

Theon smacked his dagger against the table, ready to jump over it and rip the insolent bastard a new one, until Tormund grabbed him by the shoulder. For a man who rather fight first and discuss later, it was a weird reaction. He knew Jon, and knew that something had to be cooking in that head of his to not have ordered Botley's head to be split from his body.

"I can't promise you that" Tristifer took a deep breath, ready to repeat the facts of the new life in the Iron Islands once again "I cannot. But queen Daenerys can" Theon perked up at the mention of his sister-in-law, and at the thought of what she would do at the man wanting to marry her wife "she will be the regent and protector of the realms. I cannot in good faith promise autonomy over the isles. Queen Daenerys could, once she sits the throne"

The spokes in Tristifer's mind were turning up roses. There's no way that Theon was being truthful, Daenerys Targaryen would never marry a Greyjoy, least of all a woman. She could dispel the vicious lie and grant him leave to marry his one true love. Hell, she could officiate so any and all doubts would be forgotten.

"when can I meet Queen Daenerys?"

- _Fire and Iron-_

Yara knew the plan. She knew it would work, hell she had crafted it. Of course it would work. When the time came to order her men ashore and ride towards the rock though, that's when the doubts started clawing at her.

What Darrion said had some truth, Euron Greyjoy behaved like a wild animal on a daily basis as it was, how would he behaved knowing be was cornered? Or at least very easy to find, with at least one pissed off queen after him?

"doubts?" the newly appointed captain of the Iron Victory leaned down to Yara's hunched over pose on the side of the ship.

"you could say that" the young Queens hands hung limply over the wooden railing. The seawater spraying her hands everytime the ship rocked "Euron is one unpredictable son of a bitch after all"

"aren't all Greyjoys?" the two sailors shared a laugh over Victarion's memory, they haven't had much time to mourn, not that they would in any case, not that he would enjoy that either "it is true though, that Euron Greyjoy is one insane son of a bitch. It's also true that the crazier they are the harder they fall"

"isn't that for how big someone is?" Yara's question really was half-hearted. She knew what Darrion was doing, and to be perfectly fair it was soothing her nerves "did you write my wife yet?"

"I assumed you would like to? At least add something so she knows it's not just words" from one of the many pockets in his coat he pulled a scroll that would leave with a rider the moment Yara and her men left the ship. It was a simple message. Queen Yara is alive, Victarion Greyjoy fell in battle. Obara Martell is presumed captive of the usurper Euron Greyjoy and the traitor Daario Naharis. The signature and enough parchment to write a note were all that was left to write.

Yara took the parchment and offered quill from the man before he left to check the landing preparations. Yara sighed and scribbled a quick message that would assure Daenerys it was actually her before signing her name and titles (never skipping on Consort of the Queen) and sealing the scroll.

 ***** - _We Do Not Sow/Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken-_

Obara smacked her head against the solid stone foundation of her prison over and over again. She had been doing so for the past… Well she couldn't really tell how long she had been there, to be honest. More than berating herself for being in a prison, she was beating herself up over being captured at all. She was a capable warrior and now a leader of her own kingdom shouldn't these be things that happened to other people? To incompetent fools?

To be fair her imprisonment could be worst. She hadn't been bothered much, and other than how roughly they had transported her across the west, it was like being dragged around with her father. Clearly she took after Oberyn, because she too hated having to prance around Westeros. And at the moment she hated it even more. More importantly, she could also feel that her commodity was running out on her. Rather quickly too.

"well well well" the door to the cell creaked open, and her least favorite Greyjoy walked in. It was tough to pretend she didn't know why they said he had gone mad. There was a hint of maniac in the shine of his eyes. And a definite spot of crazy in the way he cackled as he pranced in. "I hope our little princess is comfortable"

Obara's scowl deepened with every menacing step the man took towards her. In other times she would've had Nymeria to tell her to shut her mouth. Unfortunately for her that was not the case "Take these chains off and I'll show you how comfortable I can get"

Euron laughed, cackled, Obara could almost be mistaken for saying he giggled. Whatever it was it was deranged and didn't promise anything good for her "all in due time my pretty" from around his neck he took off a satchel of sorts. Black leather and full of metal and glass if the tinkling was a clue. The odds that this was a social call were dropping exponentially "for now. I want to have some fun. And I do like chains for my fun"

The princess of Dorne cranked her neck up to get a preview of what Euron had in store for her. Knives and glass vials were most of what she could see, the knives she knew, the possible poison in the vials is what worried her. This promised to be bad for her, and she almost wished she was back to beating herself up over getting captured.

- _Winter is Coming/Within Our Sights_ -

Sansa and her small cohort crossed the threshold of winter town to a cheerful sight. It looked like the north was revitalized. Yes the cold was still biting and miserable, and the signs of war and battle were everywhere, but the people of the north were resilient, and being home again, peacefully in a home where the liege lord didn't threaten to skin you, was doing the northern town a world of good. Sansa could be mistaken for thinking there was some kind of celebration.

"Lady Stark!" a young girl approached her, her mother in tow carrying a basket of food. Her mother looked towards the young Wardness apologetically but there was clearly no stopping the child. "Welcome home M'lady"

Sansa couldn't help the smile that came over her. It had been a long time since she had felt at home quite like this. "Thank you sweetheart, it's good to be back" behind her Podrick and Brienne smiled, admiring the young Lady in the making.

"to think there was a time you wanted to leave and never come back"

In Sansa's opinion you could hear a pin drop around her. The sound was essentially sucked out of her ears in favor of hearing that voice. She hadn't heard him in many years, and almost didn't recognize him when she did. All three turned around to see a young man, with the long face and dark hair so typical of the Stark family, seated on a wooden chair with wheels.

It would've been hilarious to anyone who knew Sansa, always poised and collected, jump off her horse and ram into her brother. Or it would've been if it wasn't heart wrenching and emotional. The people around took heed and walked away as much as possible to give the siblings space. The two had believed each other to be dead for a while, and to be here, in the north, with Winterfell looming behind them many years later, you could be mistaken for thinking it a miracle.

"Bran… I… How"

Bran chuckled into his sister's fur cloak clinging to her as she was to him "if I knew you would've been this speechless I would've come home ages ago".

"while these two reunite, I do not believe we've met" Brienne extended her hand to the young woman that had been pushing Bran's chair and was now standing away from it to give the Stark children privacy "Brienne of Tarth, I'm Lady Sansa's protector"

"then I guess that makes me Bran's protector?" the young girl smiled to liven the solemn mood "Meera Reed, nice to meet you"

"this is my squire, Podrick Paine"

"ah see Lady protector, now you've one upped me. I don't have a squire"

"not that you seem to need one. He's still in one piece" Sansa stood from her spot, good manners kicking in "it's very nice to meet you Lady Reed, thank you for bringing my brother home safely"

"believe me there's nothing to thank me for. And believe me when I say I am not a lady" Meera smiled at the redheaded before taking up her spot behind Bran "maybe we could move this reunion indoors? I think people are getting a bit antsy about their food". Meera of course was right, people were trying to skirt around the edges of the emotional reunion, trying to get to the different stores as much as they could without intruding.

"please, lead the way" Sansa took the reigns of her horse and followed the two who seemed more than acquainted with the road back to Winterfell.

- _Winter is Coming-_

Arya Stark was very hard to fool. When one trains under people who are not who they seem to be, one becomes keen at detecting deception. And oh were her senses a-tingling at the moment.

She of course was as suspicious of the Frey's as her uncle was, and refused to let them be alone in too big a gathering for too long. What deeply bothered Arya was that she couldn't tell what they were up to.

If a faceless person was trying to nab someone it would become apparent to those who knew what to look for. The ultimate goal was to add a face to the hall and pay the faceless God it's dues, but with people's motives the endgame was entirely too complicated.

Power of course, is what everyone ultimately craved. But the ladder of power presented itself in the middle of an endless labyrinth, where an infinite amount of turns and twists could ultimately lead to a prize. Arya didn't care for power, hell she was born into a powerful family and didn't much care for that. She didn't care for wealth, having lived with the bare minimum if at all for years. She didn't care for anything the Frey's might care for, and that made it so much harder to anticipate.

That didn't mean her skills were useless. If nothing else the people she was dealing with had never dealt with a faceless person. Which meant whatever trick she could pull on them could and would be flawless. She would figure out what they were up to eventually.

 ***** - _Unbowed/Unbent/Unbroken-_

Unbowed. Unbent. Unbroken. Obara couldn't help but laugh. How those words were wrong. How childish she had been to think her position might keep her from harm. Can't make use of power, or skill, or strength when you're powerless and restrained.

Euron Greyjoy knew that fully, and he knew the buttons to push to humiliate her, more than his actions already had.

Everything also hurt. There wasn't a body part that Greyjoy hadn't mangled and twisted to his own sick fantasy, and the young Martell could swear she would hear the cackling laughter in her nightmares for the rest of her life. However long or short that life may be.

The door to her cell creaked open again and she could feel every one of her nerves stand to attention, her muscles coiling to try and fight best she could, and her mind convincing itself to shut down so it wouldn't remember what could happen again. It wasn't Euron Greyjoy at the door though. Through the threshold walked Daario Naharis, the traitorous son of a bitch whose fault it was that she was here, that she had suffered. He was carrying a tray of potions, a bowl of water and a rag, over his shoulder was a linen shirt and a pair of pants.

"can I come in"

"it's not like I could stop you" Obara's steel gaze remained on the commander of the second son's, who put down the pail on the table where Euron had previously laid satchel—which Obara came to know he had nicknamed his fun knick knack bag.

"did he hurt you?" the humorless almost spiteful laugh that came out of the chained warrior made Daario cringe "I mean did he…"

"what does it matter to you" Obara refused to be humiliated further, even more by the upstart that was standing in front of her like an idiot "if you ask me, the one who should be suffering this is you. And I swear by all the gods that if I ever get out of here, you will"

"that's fair" he fiddled with the clothing for a bit before deciding to leave it on the table.

"what do you want"

"Greyjoy sent me. He said he–that you might need some clean up. There's no maester on the rock, so I'm the next best thing"

"that's a poor replacement" her anger subsided when the pain from one of her many injuries kicked in. She might hate him, but if the wounds weren't dressed and cleaned soon they would get infected and fester. And she refused to die in a puddle of sweat and pus "what are you waiting for. Get to it"

Euron had been very specific about what wounds to treat and which ones to leave alone. Which ones would cause the most suffering. But Daario couldn't bring himself to follow the orders. The only warrior he believed deserved to be laying here, broken and bloody had escaped his grasp. If it had been Yara Greyjoy he would have happily spilled the remedies in front of her. He might have decided to have some fun of his own with her. Obara Martell had only been the sad casualty of war, she didn't deserve to be on the receiving end of Euron Greyjoy's madness.

As carefully as he could all the wounds were cleaned up and dressed, and hoping the woman was too tired to fight back, Daario even managed to pull the remains of her shredded clothes and put her in the shirt and pants.

When all was done and he was ready to leave, the door smacked open, and Euron Greyjoy swaggered in. Obara shrunk into herself, the fear response kicking in. Daario on the other hand looked like a fish out of water.

"oh you soft man you" the Greyjoy sailor skipped over to Obara, kicking the side he knew would be tender and probably bloody under the wrappings "don't know how to follow instructions do we?"

"I did what you asked"

"did you" he kneeled to slowly open the shirt that just seconds ago was protecting Obara's modesty "I remember saying to leave these alone" his hand pulled roughly on the bandaging on Obara's chest, where the worst of the injuries laid. Slash Marks, puncture wounds and teeth bites were all visible, raw, and bleeding "must have escaped my mind then?"

"must have"

"I'll give you clearer instructions from now on then" Euron to his full height was about as tall as Daario, and yet the aura of crazy made him seem bigger, more menacing. He smirked and reached to take Daario's favorite dagger, the one with a golden woman carved in the pummel "you will stand here. And watch"

As he spoke he stepped back, and grabbed Obara by the hair, forcing her to stand. Daario's guilt rose tenfold and yet he had actually followed the order to enter the prisoner's cell unarmed, so he was powerless to stop what was coming. The Greyjoy usurper dragged the table over, close enough that Obara could be thrown on it without undoing her chains. The commander of the second son's stepped towards the door when the cloth of the new garments he had put on Obara dropped to the ground. No amount of screaming and fighting would get the young woman away from Euron, and Daario knew this, that didn't mean he needed to be present to watch.

"no no no" Euron cackled, as he unbuckled his pants "you stay. You watch. This is all your doing"

- _Fire and Iron-_

Yara was patting herself in the back for a reconnaissance well done. Her uncle and that bastard Daario didn't have men who knew the rock, and definitely not enough men at their disposal to fully staff it, so getting in had been a piece of cake. Even asking Rhaegal to wait for them in a hidden cliff had been easy too.

Thankfully, finding the dungeons hadn't been that hard either. At least not when they had one of Reginald Lannister's men guiding the way during their planning stages.

It also seemed that there was a great big party happening, or at least a great big excuse to drink and fuck the night away. That was alright with Yara. At the moment their mission was finding Obara Martell and leaving, hopefully unseen. It had taken a while to plan, and definitely perfect timing to execute. But it was definitely going according to plan.

The men she had brought along had strategically broken off from the search party every so often, to make sure they weren't being followed. Up to the moment they rounded the corner and got to the only occupied cell in the complex, everything was looking up.

Yara poked the door softly, and to her surprise it was unlocked. Inside, curled up in a corner, was the formidable Obara Martell. Her eyes shining first with fear, then with worry, and finally with relief when she saw who was there.

"rescue party for Obara Martell"

"t-t-took you long en-enough" ignoring the small stutter and instead taking the comment as a victory, Yara leaned down to check for injuries she might compromise by helping the woman up. Carefully as she could, she helped the warrior up, her chains falling to the floor, since they hadn't been actually restraining her. "ar-are they still here?"

"what do you mean?"

"I heard E-Euron, saying t-they were leaving for K-K-Kings Landing"

Yara looked back at her men, who shrugged back at her.

"they're still here. We won't be for long though"

Getting out had been as easy as getting in. The party was only getting rowdier and the soldiers were more intoxicated than when they had made their way in. Having an injured woman with them had slowed them down considerably, but they were clearly making good time. More importantly no one seemed to care for the few ironborn that didn't look familiar. Probably not all the men had even met each other, and Yara did her best to keep her head down. A woman in ironborn leathers with an eyepatch might just give them away.

If any of the rescue group had been feeling a sense of dread, it was validated the moment they left the castle. Torches began lighting all around them, and men came from everywhere.

"apologies for what's about to happen" Yara whispered to Obara and proceeded to grab her more firmly with the help of another man on the other side. Obara's skin was freshly wounded and bleeding in places, and her screams of agony could be heard across the field as the ironborn made their way to Rhaegar.

The dragon intuitively knew something was wrong, and sprung into action. Creating a wall of fire between the escaping ironborn and those coming for them as much as possible. He swooped down to get Yara and the men before they were swarmed by Euron's cutthroats, who despite the fire were still coming.

"take her and go" Yara ordered to the other man helping her carry the injured Martell. Before he could say anything she screamed again and pushed him onto Rhaegar's back before running to help the few who had stayed behind. Their flaw in an otherwise flawless plan had been that it required two trips on Rhaegar or an unbelievably perilous and long walk to get from Iron Victory to the Rock. It was clearly coming back to bite them in the ass.

 _-Fire and Iron-_

"your grace" a man, clearly a scout, barged into Dany's tent, where the small council were huddled around a map of the west. Calculating how long it would take to arrive and the manpower cost to bust into the Rock and drag Euron Greyjoy out kicking and screaming.

"come in" Daenerys, clad in black with Yara's sailing cloak around her shoulders, ordered him in. She had asked for a mourning period and at the moment not a person in her camp wore anything but black "what is it"

"a rider in the night…" before the young man could finish speaking the parchment was pulled out of his hands. Daenerys' hands trembled as she cracked the seal, a crowned kraken with its tentacles wrapped around the tail of a crowned dragon.

 _Yara Greyjoy is alive and well. Victarion Greyjoy fell in battle (what is dead may never die). Obara Martell is presumed prisoner of the usurper Euron Greyjoy and the traitor Daario Naharis._

Daenerys felt the tears crawl down her cheeks, poise on public be damned, in this moment she felt she could cry enough to let the sea go dry. What truly got her heart going was the scrawled handwriting at the bottom, the same of the countless letters she had been staring at for days on end since Yara was presumed dead.

 _Can't get rid of me that easily, your grace. The sun will rise on us again Daenerys, this I promise you._

 _I love you, and I will see you soon. Bring the cavalry when you visit._

 _Queen Yara Greyjoy. Princess of the Seven Kingdoms, queen of the Iron Islands, Queen of Salt and Rock, daughter of the sea wind and Lady reaper of Pyke, Consort to Queen Daenerys Targaryen._

"your grace?" Tyrion touched her for arm softly, trying not to startle the emotional monarch. Her bright smile however told him that might not be such a bad thing "good news I hope?"

"she's alive" Daenerys handed him the scroll to read. He didn't really need to, he just had to take a quick glance and what he had told Yara looked like chicken scratch, to know who had written it. If his queen had been dashing at breakneck speed to get to the rock, gods knows how quickly she would drag them there now. "what is it?"

"your dragon, he's been spotted a few leagues away"

The scout could not get away from the entrance of the tent fast enough to avoid getting bowled over by his hasty queen, Nymeria Martell hot on her heels. Despite the cloudy sky, they could make out the silhouette of Drogon and Viserion flying to meet their now bigger sibling.

When they eventually touched down, rattling the ground as they landed, the euphoric mood the small council had gotten riled up to was quickly dashed away as a heavily injured Obara Martell was helped off the dragon's back.

"y-your grace" Obara grabbed Daenerys by the arms as soon as she stood on firm ground, her eyes wide "your grace it's your wife…"

 **-TheIronDragon-**

 **Okay. First things first the promised summary without the descriptive triggering scene, or at least the part that is for character development.**

 **Euron is one insane bastard and Daario feels bad for Obara. Not that he betrayed Daenerys, because if Yara were in Obara's spot he wouldn't give a damn, but he genuinely feels bad for her. None of the scenes described the torture specifically, but one does address the aftermath and hints heavily at sexual abuse.**

 **That being said. I hope it wasn't too heavy and still enjoyable if you did read the torture scenes, it seemed necessary for the story.**

 **Also one point of clarification, house Reed doesn't have any words as of yet, so I chose Within Our Sights** **(I was tempted to use It's not Easy being Green as someone suggested on a forum post for fun but that didn't fit lol)**

 **Hope you liked it. I did promise I wouldn't take so long between updates but I still can't be sure when the next one will come so I can't give a set schedule.**

 **Leave me some criticism or some reactions, and I'll see you guys next chapter!**


	8. Every Storm

**Fire and Iron**

Every Storm

When she was a small child, Yara loved the darkness. She would hide out in cupboards and in the deepest parts of Pyke, where not even the sound of the waves or the smell of the sea could reach. She didn't love the darkness because it was damp, or lonely. She loved it because a person couldn't be untruthful in the dark. If you're afraid, it's obvious, and you're therefore sincere. If you're not, you don't feel a need to lie because you can lay your soul bare, and no one will ever see it.

Trust Euron to bastardize her love of the dark like this. It had taken her a while to adjust to her new surroundings. A musty smelling dungeon, far deeper than the one Obara Martell had been in, far smaller, infinitely more uncomfortable. The floor didn't even have straw to absorb the moisture, so Yara was certifiably soaked and miserable. The only light in the room came from a small hole, where she could see her uncle's axe hanging perilously over a fire, held by a weakened rusty chain.

So it was fair to say Yara wasn't enjoying her time here. What's worse, she couldn't say how long she had even been there.

After sending Obara off in Rhaegal, she and her men had been surrounded by Euron's drunken hoard. They had been ordered to leave her, but no orders had been issued about the men who accompanied her. For all she knew they had been slaughtered, she certainly saw them fight back until a duo of cowards hit her in the back of the head with a shield after the other nearly blinded her with the ashes of his torch.

And here she was. No news, no commodity, barely any light, and what was most unsettling, no visits from Euron. She had expected him to come in gloating about finally having her in his grasp. Definitely a little torture, some taunting, anything. But the only thing she had received was subhuman food at random times, and the obscene screams of her guards. Yara loved the dark, but being in the dark about her situation was driving her mad.

-oOoOo-

Obara Martell woke up on the softest bed she had ever slept on. Granted, she had been sleeping on the floor for ages so anything above rock would be infinitely comfortable. The speared sun banner on the door flaps definitely helped, her sister sitting vigil by the door probably had more to do with it.

"Hey" Nymeria took a couple of steps to sit by her, her usual mocking smirk was gone, instead replaced by full blown concern. Frankly it was disconcerting "how are you feeling"

 _How are you feeling_. Simple question. Impossible answer really. If she said how she really felt, Nymeria would never let her out of her sight. If she lied, Nymeria would know and she would never let her out of her sight. Sometimes it was hard to know who the older Sand Snake was. "like hell"

"I'll bet" the younger girl reached out to trace one of the bandages on her sister's shoulder. It had been one of the worst ones. It was a bite mark, and the maester guessed whoever it belonged to had been coated in a heaping helping of poison, because it had caused some serious skin death "do you want to talk about it?"

Usually, when they returned from a particularly hard training session, they would talk to each other. Debrief essentially, a clear minded warrior was a more effective one. Once the training stopped and the actual battles began, Obara closed up more and more. It became about controlling her emotions, and keeping everything at bay. Nymeria almost always got a ' _no thanks'_ or ' _do I look like a child to you Nym_ '.

"I think so"

"okay" the older sibling moved towards the middle of the bed almost on instinct, leaving enough room for her sister to lay beside her or at least be comfortable enough to look at her.

"how long?"

"about three weeks"

The Martell heir laughed humorlessly as she shook her head. It only took three weeks, Euron Greyjoy deserved a prize.

"I Uh. It seems funny that we got so used to the inviting Greyjoys" ~ _We're gonna have fun~ "_ Yara and Theon Greyjoy are nothing like their uncle"

"or their jerk uncle is nothing like them"

"could be" Obara's hand unconsciously reached for her wrists, which were bandaged instead of shackled "what do you know"

"Obara…" Nymeria wanted her sister to get everything off her chest. Obara wanted to say as little as possible. Both of them were bound to annoy each other "if you keep this bottled up…"

"I know you know" the heir apparent to Dorne had never sounded so fragile and broken "I know because I can see it"

"what are you talking about"

"you gave me moon tea" Nymeria's eyes widened, the healer was sure Obara wouldn't know, so how in the world has she figured it out "you know when they tell you to take the goblets to the kitchens it's not just because it looks messy" both turned towards the bedside table where a cup with some leaves at the bottom sat.

"I… alright, I'll give this one to you"

"you know what he did. Other than the obvious" ~ _All the Dornish women, so beautiful and so feisty~_ "who else knows?"

"the healer… and the queen"

-oOoOo-

The feeling of being watched is an unnerving one. It intensifies when you know you're alone in a room, particularly in a dungeon where no one wanted to be in, at least voluntarily, for more time than required. That's what Yara was feeling, it might have also been a sense of impending doom for all she knew. But she could swear she felt someone's crazy eyes over her.

By now, she had tired herself thinking of ways to escape. Even if she could make it out of her shackles, she would never make it out of the rock alive. At this point the resilient woman had settled for waiting, particularly for her wife to get in contact with Obara Martell and come break her out.

Her wife. Now that was a thought that had been ever present since the queen of the Iron Islands had departed Dragonstone.

For one, Daenerys would kill her for getting herself into a stupid situation, when she could've very well waited for reinforcements. Then she would bring her back and kill her again because of her bone headed decision to not tell her she wasn't actually dead. With all the time in the world to reflect, Yara began imagining the heartbreak she would feel if someone told her Dany had died. She had willingly put her through that, and if she got out of here alive she would never hear the end of it. Finally, and most recently, Yara had begun thinking that she might never see Daenerys again. For the self confessed unfeeling ironborn, it stung. The short time she had with the sassy, intrepid, brave queen had almost made every struggle up to that point worth it. The thought that she would never get to feel the queen's small frame against her body, which felt like a puzzle piece that fit perfectly, or smell that scent that was uniquely hers… well it nearly drove her to madness.

"oh my sweet niece" Yara snapped out of her thoughts when the door to her cell creaked open. In waltzed in her insane uncle, clad in his usual black garments, holding his ridiculous bag of torture toys. The young woman had been expecting this visit, and at this point had almost wished for Euron to get it over with and stop toying with her.

"oh my insane bastard of an uncle" Euron smirked at her retort, carefully setting his bag on the table across the room "kind of you to grace me with your presence"

"oh my sweet, we are family" the man nearly skipped up to her, Yara could swear the crazy shine in his eyes was brightening up the room "and I had to see for myself what masterpiece I created" the queen had to resist the urge to kick Euron in the groin when he reached over to examine her missing eye. It could only make the situation worst, or it would've been what Euron expected, and she refused to do that "beautiful".

"absolutely dashing. Got me married"

"so I've heard, my delayed congratulations on bringing such a boon to the Greyjoy family"

"shame you couldn't make the wedding" Yara's hateful gaze made Euron giddy. Torturing the Martell girl had been fun, but she wasn't bred like the tough ironborn. She had broken, he could almost say too easily. Yara wouldn't. No, she had been raised by his insane brother, she would fight him back, any ironborn would, any blood of his would.

"it's a shame. I'll be sure to send my niece-in-law a beautiful wedding gift" Euron pulled out a knife from his back pocket, curved at the tip, it almost looked like a knife to skin a fish… Or a person "or an apology for the death of her beloved wife"

"do your worst"

Euron had stationed a couple of ironborn guards outside, and had left Daario Naharis outside the door. The man had a unique way to irk him, but he couldn't get rid of him quite yet. He wouldn't let him touch Yara either. Be what she may, she was ironborn, she was a Greyjoy, he would be the only one who would end the Greyjoys until he was the only one left.

For his part Daario almost felt angry about being left outside, like a glorified guard. That was until he heard the near screams of pain coming from the room. He wanted to hear the fish queen scream, until her throat gave way, but didn't expect her to. No, he knew this was the most he would probably get. But knowing she was suffering was more than enough for the proud man. He would bide his time and wait until Euron was distracted, he wanted to see the damage with his own eyes, and possibly inflict some of his own.

-oOoOo-

With each passing say Daenerys grew more and more anxious. It almost felt like the first time Yara's life had hung in the balance, they were trudging through borrowed time. And yet it seemed like the gods wanted to delay her as much as they could. A storm had fallen on their march, the ground was too muddy to move their army, and the storm too heavy for her to fly even a small detachment to the rock. So they were stuck in Crakehall, thankfully the ancient castle was big enough to accommodate the bulk of the Targaryen forces, and much of the returning Lannister army.

Roland Crakehall had graciously received them, and Daenerys suspected he had probably received Reginald Lannister at some point, judging by the excitement with which the queen was welcomed to the Westerlands. He had loudly talked about it being time the Targaryens came back to fix what the Baratheons broke, casually ignoring that Cersei Lannister was now crowned queen of Westeros, though not for long if Dany had a say. He had purposely stayed away from the dragon queen however. Despite being a smart man he knew, if given the chance, he might step on his own toes, or tie his own hangman noose as it were.

That's how Daenerys found herself in the company of Nymeria Martell, making the long walk from the queen's chambers to the room where Obara had essentially sequestered herself since her arrival. Daenerys had strongly suspected what the oldest Martell had gone through, her fears confirmed by the dutiful maester who felt it a necessity to inform the queen of every treatment he had administered. Possibly to show off, likely to cover his ass in case anything had gone wrong. Either way, she had been given confirmation, and it only made sense that she see the heir apparent to Dorne, and the woman Yara had gotten herself captured over.

"Obara" Nymeria slowly opened the door to the room. Her sister laid in bed, her hands behind her head, examining the ceiling carefully "the queen is here to see you"

"brilliant" Dany couldn't miss the sarcasm in the gruff voice of the warrior. Nymeria rolled her eyes at her sister's antics, and stepped aside to allow Daenerys in, whispering that she'd be right outside the door in case of interruptions "your grace".

"your highness" Obara scoffed at the title Daenerys gave her, her defensiveness pushing out of its restraints, like a wild animal "may I sit"

"you're the queen, you can do whatever you want"

Dany, who apparently was always surrounded by tougheaded warriors, took the snarky comeback in stride, and took a seat right by Obara, who she could almost swear retreated into herself.

"I'm not your enemy, you know" the eldest Martell stayed quiet, not because she couldn't think of a million things to say, but because Daenerys wasn't lying "my wife saved you"

"would you like me to drop to my knees and thank you for that?"

"no" Daenerys fiddled with the strands coming off her light cloak, uncannily shy "I'd like to know how she was, last you saw her"

Obara sighed deeply, she couldn't deny the queen this much. She couldn't imagine what she had felt, thinking her wife was dead. Or how torturous it must have felt to hear from Obara that Yara was alive, and not being able to get any information off her, because of the swarm of healers and her sister's permanent presence.

"she looked fine" the sand snake cringed, at how ridiculous and dry that sounded "she was ever the dashing savior. Got me right out to your dragon" she could feel her hands shake, and the unnerving stare of the silver headed queen on her "she looked incredibly fierce when she ordered her men to go"

"well, that definitely sounds like my Yara" Dany smiled on reflex, softening the Martell woman "what do you think we'll find when we get to the rock?"

Obara took a sharp breath, she definitely didn't want to talk about that, about what she thought may be happening to the spouse of her young queen "your grace… I"

"I'm driving myself insane thinking about what may be happening to her. Sometimes I think she was better off dead in my mind. At least she was at peace"

"she's not dead. And she won't be. At least I hope not" her shaking hands grasped at the blanket underneath her, knowing she was going to be forced to speak about what happened, inadvertently or not "he hurt me. And frankly your grace, I think he's going to hurt her too" Daenerys nodded, she already knew that "Yara Greyjoy is Euron's biggest threat. Her crown, her fleet, her wife, everything indicates that Euron is in for a bad time" that certainly wasn't making the queen feel any better, so Obara hurried, trying to put her thoughts together before she could put her foot in it "but he won't kill her. As insane as Euron Greyjoy is he's not without honor. Killing his niece when she's in uneven ground would hurt his pride"

"I don't think that is as comforting as you think it is"

"I suppose not" the young queen smiled towards the Martell heir, trying to liven up the mood "but it's the truth. She'll be with you in no time"

Dang nodded, willing herself to believe that her words could be true. It was better than the alternative.

"how are you?" to both of their surprises, the Dornish woman did not shrink into herself again when the question was asked. When Nymeria asked her how she was holding up, it was with the intention of Obara getting everything off her chest. When the queen asked, it was an opening to speak about whatever she wanted, her weeks at the Rock notwithstanding.

"itching to get moving, if I'm honest" the warriors looked towards the window where the rain was patterning incessantly, the occasional bolt of thunder rattling the glass.

"me too" Daenerys sighed, knowing full well that they were going nowhere, she at least intended on helping someone.

"even this storm has to break"

Daenerys smiled with nostalgia, Yara's voice popping up in her head " _every storm runs out of rain_ " she had told her during a particularly trying leg of their journey, where their ships rocked so hard they could've capsized at any moment. They had been reluctant to make landfall anywhere, so close to their endpoint, with so many ships. Of course she knew the rain would eventually stop, but living in the moment it seemed endless. Like so many things had before Yara, where now her life was far more stable than ever before, and the rain did eventually stop, just like her worrying had.

"yes, every storm eventually does" the heartache faded away if even for a second, cementing her determination to get her wife back.

-oOoOo-

Daario opened the door to the cell carefully. He knew Euron was very far, and so were the iron born, but it always paid to be cautious. The Greyjoy captain had his men bring straw to the dungeon, and had a torch lit up. The weird request had been a large shiny mirror, that had been placed in a corner. Daario hadn't understood what that was about, until he saw Yara in person.

The ironborn queen was shackled to the wall, knees on the ground, her arms raised over her head and to her sides, almost like she was crucified to the wall. Her face was bloodied by a nasty cut somewhere on her forehead, it was hard to tell with how messy the whole scene looked. What was most stifling was her eye. Previously it had been covered by an eyepatch, a proud crowned dragon and kraken adorning it. Now it was raw and exposed. Whatever stitching she had gotten by the maesters and healers when the injury occurred was gone. Euron had wanted to see his full masterpiece, and had cut the wound open, the only thing keeping her empty eye socket from seeing the light of day was that her eyes were shut tight. The mirror then made sense, if the queen were awake she would've seen her bloodied, injured figure staring back at her. With no slack in her shackles, she wouldn't be able to move anywhere. She could close her eyes, or put her head down, but eventually she would have to look up, at herself.

Daario tried to feel more hatred for her. He knew this was war, and more than anything he knew she had taken what had been his. But he couldn't help feel pain, no one deserved this.

"unbelievable that my uncle would leave you unsupervised" Yara's gruff voice broke the silence in the room, startling the commander of the second sons. She looked up, keeping her eye shut tightly, managing to load her gaze with hatred and contempt "what do you want"

Honest to the gods he tried to say something, anything, but shock had done a good job at shutting him.

"very well" Yara shook her head, a humorless laughter coming off her "unless you're here to break me out, get going"

"does it hurt?"

"unshackle me and I'll show you how much it hurts" the man felt his hand sneak to where his sword would've been, if he had one. Even tied to the wall Yara could manage to inflict fear "get out"

"I'm sorry"

"no amount of apologies will save you from me if I ever get out of here" Yara's head lifted, but she didn't look at him, she looked at herself in the mirror. Bloodied, tortured, but not broken. She looked up higher, straight at the man, so he could see her, what he had caused and smirked knowingly "nothing will save you from my wife either, cutthroat"

"you should've never taken her from me. You don't deserve her"

"she's not yours" thinking about the silver headed queen filled the queen with bravado "and yes, I probably don't deserve her. But neither did you, and you will never have her again"

"clearly, neither will you" he still felt unbelievably guilty for what Yara had clearly been put through. But not because she was suffering because of him. He could tell the difference, he felt for Yara because he could never imagine living through that. Her in his place however, worked perfectly "enjoy the view your majesty. When you cross to the afterlife, be sure to look me up, taking back what you think is yours"

What could've been a triumphant walk away was entirely ruined by Yara's nearly maniacal cackle. Daario could be forgiven for realizing the madness may run in the family after all. He turned his head back to the kneeling queen, who was fully laughing, head thrown back.

"what?"

"she will chop your manhood and make you wear it for a necklace" the laughter ceased immediately, replaced by a predatory grin "if I don't get to you first. And mark my words, you will suffer"

"if you ever make it out of here"

"I will. Because you're worth nothing to the cause. If we don't get you first, Euron will. And I will be glad for him getting his way for once" a flashing thought ran through her head, she definitely had nothing to lose at this point "if it makes it any easier, you can sleep better knowing that Daenerys finally had someone to satisfy her like she deserves, so your loss will mean nothing"

Daario Naharis, always in control of his feelings, saw bright red. Before he knew it, his body was back where it had been at the beginning of the conversation, but his knuckles were raw, having taken his anger out on the kneeling monarch.

"brave of you to ignore my orders, cutthroat"

Euron stepped into the cell, his arms behind him. Daario froze in position, and Yara, spitting blood from the hit, chuckled drily.

"get out" Fast as his legs could carry him, but far slower than he wanted to, Daario left the room, leaving Yara alone with her torturer. "I'm glad you can flex your impertinent attitude with someone"

"impertinent, big word for a self identifying savage" Yara knew it would take much more to snap Euron out of control, although she wouldn't put it past him to have this in his plans "come to try again?"

"oh my dear sweet Yara, no" Euron reached down to raise her face, admiring his handy work "you're much too valuable for me to break you, at least completely" he smirked, reaching out for a solid metal rod resting too far from the queen's reach "doesn't mean I can't… send a message"

 **-TheIronDragon-**

 **Hello everyone! I just wanted to point out, if anyone noticed, that the parts of the chapter aren't split by house words because it pretty much goes back and forth between Yara in the Rock and Dany in Crakehall.**

 **Also, if anyone catches the song reference in the story I'll be most impressed.**

 **This was a much more emotional episode on purpose, I'm very much counting on your emotional pain before the action, sorry. But since we haven't had a lot of Yara/Dany so far, I thought it would be good to have some fluff about what they're going through, if that could even be called fluff.**

 **DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW AND CRITICIZE/PRAISE IF YOU THINK IT WORTHY! (Lol)**

 **I'll catch you guys in the next one!**


	9. A Gift

The pungent smell of blood and the screeching sounds of battle rung around Daenerys' ears as she and her men pushed through the rock. Reginald had begged and pleaded for a long time for Dany to spare the Lannister family the expense of rebuilding the castle, completely throwing out her plans to fly in and root out the traitor's root and stem.

So, despite her anxiety, Nymeria Martell delayed the attack in favor of hitting them as hard as they could. Daenerys flew overhead the night before, to confirm all the specifics that Reginald had given them—the softest points to hit the castle from the ground, the hardpoints for a siege, and how many men were holding the castle.

So here they were now, after all the planning and the delaying. Pushing through the barely defensible gates, against half hearted second sons forces and the brutally loyal ironborn men. But Daenerys only cared about one thing, and she was going to single-mindedly reach it. Around her Obara, Nymeria, Grey Worm and her personal guard were pushing forward to reach the main castle where the defense was toughest.

-oOoOo-

Theon hit the sandy beach running, praying to the drowned god that the element of surprise was on their side. Or well, so it started before hand until their small detachment began to realize that no one was coming to stop them. The sounds of an already ongoing battle covered up the sounds of the bells in the docks, from the few watchmen that were still doing their meager job.

Jon began running behind Theon, both gunning for the nearest staircase that could take them to the dungeon where they could tell the fighting was thickest. The darkened steps of the castle greeted them, and Theon could hear the echo of voices, swords and screams, a tough battle was happening in the dungeons and little could push him forward as much as the thought of his sister being down there.

-oOoOo-

"Wait, Obara" Nymeria grasped Dany's arm before she could get too far ahead of them. Her sister turned around to look at her, keeping her attention on the very loud surroundings "Can you hear that?"

"Want to be more specific, Nym?"

Nymeria put her finger to her lips, and then pointed towards the only other set of steps coming from above. They found that the lower the level in the dungeons, the higher value prisoners they found. It also happened that the lower they got, the tougher the fight, until they reached the lowest level of the dungeons. In cells and hallways that could rival the black cells in the red keep, they couldn't find a single soldier. It was quiet, unnerving, and unbelievably suspicious.

The loud clinging of the metal on metal coming from the staircase began drawing closer. Up the steps they could start to see the outlines of men, illuminated by torches. The older sand snake pointed towards the walls that framed the entrance to the dungeons. Whoever those men were, they were making too much noise to assume anyone would be waiting for them downstairs.

-oOoOo-

"This is too easy" Jon uttered, looking over his shoulder constantly, the sounds of orders and screams coming from overhead, worried that they were about to get ambushed at any moment.

"There's too many of Daenerys' forces. I'm sure she's flying overhead keeping them in check" Theon shined the torch in to the last floor of the dungeons, the smell of dampness and blood more overwhelming here than up above.

Their small crew of men with Theon up front and Jon bringing up the rear emerged from the dampened floor. It was unnerving, how quiet it could get, considering they were in the middle of a battle.

"We should start heading forward and…"

"Drop your swords"

Jon flinched as the tip of a sword, or a speer, was laid on the back of his neck. Here, in the darkened dungeons of Casterly Rock, deep beneath the earth, hardly seemed a good place for a son of the North to die.

Just ahead, as his eyes adjusted to the dark, he could see Tormund's hand grasping his sword harder, and the outlines of people moving to surround him and his men. The thudding of leather boots on the rocky ground, overtaking the sound of hard breaths.

"I said. Drop your swords" the steel behind him dug a bit deeper into his neck, more insistently. Not enough to draw blood, but enough to create tension. Soon, Jon started wishing that he carried weapons that were better for close quarters than long claw.

"There's nothing here for you. The battle is lost, just surrender"

"Theon?"

The small crew following Theon unclenched at the familiar sound of a female voice. Behind Jon, whoever was holding the sword lowered it in favor of lighting a torch.

When their eyes finally came to, Theon found himself holding tightly to a small silver-headed woman, surrounded by a small crew of unsullied. Tormund nudged Jon, mockingly looking at Theon wrapped around the Dragon Queen.

"Your Grace" Dany scoffed, making Theon laugh softly "I thought you'd be up in the air"

"I have to find her, and I can't do that from up there"

Theon smiled, taking the queen's hand to reassure her as best he could. The closer they got to where they believed Euron would hold Yara, the more dread built up. It was easier to think that maybe she was still with Euron, maybe gone, instead of somewhere in the dungeons and dead.

"Your Grace" Jon stepped forward, carefully keeping his hand away from his sword, feeling the unsullied gaze on them "I'm Jon Snow, son of Eddard Stark"

In any other time, Dany would've met Jon's introduction with stoicism. Right now, in this anxious moment, all Daenerys knew was that the scowling northerner helped Theon get there—racing against time and odds to free Theon's sister, her wife.

"I wish we had met in better circumstances, Jon Snow"

"You and me both, your Grace" The stoic Jon Snow allowed his smile to try and reassure her "Let's find this pirate queen"

The group quickly decided on the fastest way to cover the cells around them. Had they taken a moment to realize, they might have noticed that it was all eerily easy, almost like Euron left them a game: keys hanging by each door, letting them be greeted by rolls of hay left on the floor like people sleeping. And the more doors to empty rooms they opened, the more anxious Dany became.

"Daenerys" the young queen stepped out of the cell she was checking trying to steel herself for bad news. "This is for you"

Outside the furthest door in the dungeons, with more locks and keys than any of the others, was a parchment.

" _My dear Niece-In-Law, I hope you like my late wedding present. I apologize for not greeting you with it, but there are places to conquer and people to murder_

 _-Your uncle-in-law and rightful king of the Iron Islands, Euron Greyjoy"_

Grey Worm tapped the door with the back of his spear, surprised that it simply swung open with a soft creak of dampened wood. Without waiting from him to clear the room, Daenerys barreled in torch in hand to illuminate the dampened cell.

On the floor, kneeling and bloodied was Yara.

"Yara!" Daenerys dropped to the ground in front of her wife. She cupped Yara's head between her hands softly, lifting her to the light. Her eye was raw and bloodied, and a side of her face was caked in blood, hair and her matted hair. Dany could tell it all probably came from the ear Yara seemed to be missing. "Yara" her voice cracked into a whisper, tears threatening to spill over.

"We really need to stop meeting like this my love" the soft grasp came from the kneeling figure, a pained smirk on her face.

Grey Worm and the unsullied surrounded Yara and Daenerys to let them have a moment in private. The already small and cramped cell became more cramped when Nymeria and Obara realized that in the small cell there was another door. This one though, was wide open. They were looking at the body of Daario Naharis, nailed to the wall, eyes staring into nothingness. On his chest they had nailed a parchment that said

 _"To my niece and her wife, I gift you a traitor"_

 **Hello y'all! Wow it's been a long time.**

 **Honestly I kinda lost the shine for the story, even though I liked where it was going. Who would've thought that the shaky last season of the show would lead me to finishing this!**

 **In case any of you don't know, I am republishing the original Sail Away story on ao3. Fire and Iron will follow, and then Ice and Blood for the last part of this weirdly dope trilogy I'm building. I hope it's not half as disappointing as the writing for what's left of game of thrones!**

 **As always, I welcome the comments and the screeching! Follow me on Tumblr if you wanna yell at me about how long this takes me to begin with on TheIronDragonRants.**

 **I'll catch you guys in the next one!**


	10. By the Old Gods and the New

**Hey peoples! I know that the previous chapter also felt like an interlude, but I felt like Dany and Yara needed a moment to breathe. I also really disagree with what they did with Daenerys' character, so I felt I needed to address it. (I don't hate that they made her go mad, but on their own premises it makes no sense, so here is this fluff fest)**

 **Thank you to the new followers, the love and the comments. You guys are awesome!**

 **Here we go!**

 **Fire And Iron**

 **By the Old Gods and the New**

When Yara woke up, her first instinct was to shake off the shackles that had been tying her to a wall for weeks now. Instead of the fruitless pull of Chains against a wall, the young queen felt her hand travel towards her through a path of cotton sheets.

Slowly, she opened her eye. First kiting the warm glow of the room she was in. Nothing about the surroundings were distinctive. In fact it looked like every other room in any fancy castle. All except for the red, gold and black banner hanging on the wall, and the beautiful woman sitting by her bedside.

"good morning my love. How are you feeling?"

"Like a herd of horses stomped on me"

Dany smiled, her right hand softly playing with the few tendrils of hair falling onto Yara's for head. It was surreal, to finally have her so close after everything they had lived through recently.

"Where are we?"

"Still in Casterly Rock" Daenerys continued to softly pet her wife's hair, making sure to keep her as calm as possible "the castle fell surprisingly fast"

"Euron?"

"We think he escaped before we attacked the castle"

Yara dropped her head against the pillow, a frustrated sigh escaping her lips. The squirmy bastard always got away, and as of recently he also seemed to get away with a part of her.

"We think he's heading for Kings Landing"

"You seem to be fine with this?"

"We're all heading that way my love" the brunette grimaced at the thought of having to follow anyone to that shit hole place "Not so excited about our mission?"

"Some people might say it takes an arm and a leg to marry a queen. Little did they know it takes an eye and an ear"

"Yara!"

"If my prize is you, my queen, I'd pay it and maybe more"

"Just maybe? Perhaps it's time I find myself another consort"

"Well, if I lose another eye, I wouldn't be able to look at your face and thank the gods that you're my wife"

"very charming, Greyjoy. I like that in a woman"

Yara reached down for Dany's hand, keeping her smile as soft and apologetic as possible.

"I'm sorry, for what happened"

"Yara that wasn't—"

"I should've waited. For news or better odds" her face scrunched up in remorse "I should've made it a priority to tell you I was fine"

"you're here now"

"you know, the only thing I could think about while I was kidnapped, was how much I would hate if you were in my position" Dany could feel the tears springing to her eyes as Yara spoke, her voice softer than anyone had probably ever heard it. "If someone told me you were in the hands of some insane bastard, I would tear into the seven hells themselves to free you. And all I could think was how much you must be hurting, thinking I died so far from you"

It was hard, to be angry at Yara when she was this sincere and this apologetic. And honestly? She didn't want to be angry either.

"it's all in the past, you're here now" Dany's purple eyes filled with amusement at the thought that she would probably never leave Yara out of her sight again without a life or death reason.

"we have to get you that damn throne so we can finally rest"

"and rule"

"that too"

"hopefully before either one of us loses another body part?"

Yara smirked at her wife, amusement shining on her grey gaze "gives me a rugged pirate look, don't you think?" the Targaryen queen laughed, despite the tears of maybe relief or perhaps sadness rolling from her eyes. Ever the emotionally pained one, Yara chatisized herself softly for making her cry, reaching her hands up to clear her tears "You're the love of my life Daenerys, and I am not going anywhere"

The Queens lips met her wife's, relief flooding her. They had been far apart for too long. All over a God forsaken throne that hardly seemed worth the heartache. All that mattered right now though, was the wonderful woman slowly tugging her off her chair and into bed.

"Yara" her voice came off soft and breathless, trying to keep her desire clamped down "you're still injured"

"then be gentle my love, because I need you"

-oOoOo-

Theon knocked on his sister's door, nervously wringing his hands, with the sand snakes in toe. Daenerys' voice beckoned him in, and the prince of the Iron Islands found that he had a hard time keeping a straight face. It's not everyday one sees one's sister, who he'd last seen bloodied up and in pain, laying in bed with the mother of dragons laying her head on her chest, and a bed sheet covering them up.

"Well, I'm glad I don't have to ask how you're feeling"

"The healer recommended rest and relaxation. This is the most relaxed I've ever been" Daenerys slapped her shoulder softly, and it seemed like everything was finally back in place.

"I have some well wishers with me"

Obara and Nymeria inched into the room, trying much like Theon to keep the smirks off their faces.

"My queen, your grace" they tipped their heads towards the Queens laying in bed, everyone ignoring the _naked_ elephant in the room "we wanted to make sure you were in good hands"

"who's better hands than my wife's?" the rugged woman kissed the silver-headed queen's head, realizing perhaps too late how soft and smitten she must be coming off as "I'm glad to see you've recovered well, your grace"

Despite her scowl at the "your grace" title, Obara couldn't help be grateful for the woman who had freed her.

"I believe I owe you a debt, Lady Greyjoy. House Martell owes you a debt"

"There can be no debts between allies, and I hope friends, lady Obara"

Nymeria and Obara looked around the room, surprised at how easily they could let down their guard around this company. Perhaps it was the debts they owed each other, or the mutual understandings of what they had to do to get here. Whatever it was, Yara was definitely not too far off.

"so long as we have the understanding that I am not a lady"

"aye, we can work with that"

-oOoOo-

Late into the night, Daenerys found that sleep was hard to get, even with Yara sleeping next to her. Most recently, her sleepless nights had to do with not knowing if Yara was fine or not. Whether they would find her alive or her heart would ache for another whose life had to pay for her duty.

Now, her sleepless nights were something more. How many people would she end up hurting to get the throne. Were it not for Reginald Lannister, she would've burned down the Rock to find Yara. Had the new Warden of the West not presented his case so thoroughly, and Obara Martell not offered an alternative strategy, she would've rained fire on the castle.

"no… no" Yara's whispered urgency startled Daenerys out of her train of thought. Granted, Dany was no stranger to her wife's nightmares. They would come and go randomly, as would her own, that didn't mean it wasn't terrifying when either Queen would wake up to find the other thrashing in fear "stop… no"

"Yara. Yara, sweetheart" Dany began to softly scratch her scalp, shushing her to be as gentle as possible "you're dreaming my love, you're safe"

"no… no. Please. Leave her… no" the Greyjoy queen began thrashing more harshly

"Yara" she whispered again, trying to get her attention without startling her.

"Take me… no"

"Yara"

"Dany… no… run"

"YARA!"

The pirate Queen shot up from bed, panting harshly, desperately looking around for the threats in her dream in the otherwise peaceful room and silent castle.

"Yara, it's me, you're safe, you're safe"

The older woman continued gasping for breath, her hands shaking as she looked for something, anything to keep her grounded.

"I just. They, he, had you"

Softly she nudged Yara forward, sitting herself behind her distressed wife to put her back on her chest, making sure she felt safe.

"it was all a dream my love, breathe with me, it's okay" the ever rugged Yara dropped her head onto Dany's shoulder, her breaths going in and out quickly at first, and then in slow rhythms that matched Dany's breaths behind you "we're alright"

"he took you from me, and I couldn't do anything about it. I'm a Queen, and even in my dreams he took my wife and I couldn't do anything about it" as her breathing slowed down tears began springing out. By the God's she knew that crying was unbecoming.

 _You have to be strong always_ , is what her father always told her. _We are Ironborn, Yara. We take what is ours and we pay the Iron price. The Greyjoys are the children of the kraken my daughter, and you are the future of our house_. And yet here she was, weeping because of a bad dream.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" the apology started rolling off her, softer and softer each time with the heels of her hands digging into her eyes.

"Yara, baby listen to my voice" Dany ducked her head down, resting on Yara's shoulder. She had months of experience soothing her wife, and years of quieting her own nightmares "there's nothing to apologize for, you've done nothing wrong"

"you married me because I could protect you. And here I am, a mess that needs comfort and protection"

"I married you because I love you" Yara slouched further into Dany's body, drawing comfort from the heat that her wife always seemed to have in spades "crying is not a weakness, fear is not weakness, asking for help is not weakness. Love this grand is not weakness either"

-oOoOo-

Yara lost track of how long they sat there, silently drawing comfort from each other, until something began to dawn on her.

"you were awake"

"what?"

"when you woke me up. You were already awake long before"

Dany's arms reached around Yara's body, hugging her more tightly than she had before "and they say all northerners are is dumb burly barbarians"

"Daenerys…"

"I'm afraid" her voice was so soft that Yar wondered if it had been real in the first place.

Slowly she untucked herself from Dany's arms, turning to face the young queen, slow enough to make sure her dressings wouldn't get caught on the bedding. She grabbed Dany's hands in her own, not knowing if she should be happy that even though they were less calloused than her own, they weren't the soft hands of a princess anymore. The moonlight shining into the room framed the already small queen in shadows, making her seem even more fragile. She could also see the tear tracks making her way down her face.

"What in the world could make you, Daenerys Targaryen the mother of dragons, afraid?"

"It's not funny, Greyjoy"

Yara tipped her head to the side, surprised that Dany who was usually very lighthearted around her in private, was snipping at her now "Talk to me then, what is wrong?"

"I wanted to burn the rock down" Her eyes dropped away from Yara's steely gaze, because that made her afraid too. She might see disappointment in her eyes, or worse, that she might disappear too deep in Yara and forget that this needed to be voiced, perhaps rather urgently "I didn't care who was here, or who I hurt. All I knew is that they had something that was mine and I had to get you back"

"And that makes you afraid?"

"What if it's too late to stop me next time? What if I can't stop myself i the stakes are bigger?" Yara's head perked up at the sound of sniffles, just because she couldn't see the tears it didn't mean they weren't there. Paying more attention also helped because Daenerys whispered, ever so softly "What if I'm going mad?"

This was one of those defining moments. One of those few where Yara couldn't simply jump into the deep end. She wanted a well thought out response, because her fear deserved at least that much.

"When a Targaryen is born, the God's flip a coin and the world holds its breath" Daenerys' head snapped upwards, incredulous that Yara of all people would agree so easily "People also say that the Lannisters shit gold, and that the Starks can turn into wolves. So pardon me if I don't put much stock in these folksy sayings"

"But…"

"Does that mean I'm going insane too? If I would tear this, or any, castle apart brick by brick to get you back. Does that mean I'm going mad too?" Dany scoffed, rolling her eyes at her wife incredulously, though she still relented when Yara lifted their hands to drop a kiss onto her wrist, and then the back of her hand, giving reassurance as much as she could "The world has taken so much from you, my love. And all you've done is give back to so many lives and for so few things for you". Her hands reached up to cup Dany's face, carefully clearing out her tears with so much devotion. Had anyone else seen it, it would be hard to believe someone could love somebody that much "the only thing you should worry about is how others might use this weakness, because they will. But you are the best person in this stinking shit kingdom my love"

"Well of course you'd have to say that" Dany pulled Yara closer, kissing her softly before playfully pushing her away "you're my wife"

Yara rolled her eyes back at her, pleased to see they were going back to their easy ways "Even if I wasn't, which let us both admit, would be a pity" laughter invaded their small space, that laughter of easier times and less heavy conversations "even if I wasn't your wife, I believe in you. I believe in you more than I've believed in anyone in my life. And I don't believe in crazy people"

"Would you stop me if you thought I was becoming something you can't believe in?"

"If at any point I think you're making a mistake, I will make sure we talk it out"

"Promise me?"

"I swear it, my love. By the old gods and the new, I swear it"

THere were probably a million different obstacles between here, in this bedroom in a small moment of peace, and everything they bargained for when they sailed to Westeros. And though at the end of the day this love would not be enough to keep a kingdom together or beat a tyrant, it might be enough to keep Dany together, and to Yara that seemed more than enough.

 **Don't forget to follow me on tumblr if you want to scream at me for the shenanigans I do TheIronDragonRants, and swing over to look at the edited version of** ** _Sail Away_** **on ao3, where the third part of this series will live!**


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